Chairman Mao's red-braised pork

"Red cooking" is a Chinese method of stewing or braising with both dark and light soy sauces and caramelised sugar; it imparts a red colour to the food. Rich, sticky, savoury- sweet, this pork recipe ticks all those boxes. Destination Flavour China

• serves

  6

• prep

  20 minutes

• cook

  1 hour

• difficulty

  Easy

Stream free On Demand

Sichuan and Hunan

episode • Destination Flavour China • 

cooking • 

25m

G

episode • Destination Flavour China • 

cooking • 

25m

G

Ingredients

• 1.5 kg pork belly, skin on, bones removed
• 2 tbsp peanut oil
• 110 g roughly broken yellow rock sugar or white sugar
• 60 ml (¼ cup) Shaoxing wine
• 8 slices ginger, lightly bruised
• 2 star anise
• 6 dried red chillies
• 1 piece cassia bark or cinnamon stick
• ½ tsp salt
• 1 tsp soy sauce

Serves 6 as part of a shared meal.

Instructions

1. Place the pork belly in a large saucepan or wok and cover with cold water.

2. Place over high heat and bring to the boil.

3. Boil for 15 minutes, then remove the pork and discard the water.

4. Rinse the pan and wash the pork under running water to remove any scum, then cut into 5 cm blocks.

5. Return the clean pan or wok to medium heat and add the oil and half the sugar. Fry the sugar until it forms a dark caramel, then add the pork and stir to coat.

6. Add the Shaoxing wine, ginger, star anise, chilli, cassia bark and enough cold water to just cover the pork. Bring to a simmer, then cover, reduce the heat to low and simmer gently for 45 minutes or until the pork is tender and the liquid is reduced and glossy. (You may need to uncover the pork for the last 15 minutes or so depending on how tightly fitting your wok lid is.)

7. Add the salt and soy sauce and stir well. Taste the liquid and adjust the seasoning if necessary.

8. Allow to stand for 15 minutes, then reheat gently before serving.

Photography by Adam Liaw.

Get Fuchsia 's top tips for Chinese home cooking - and where next regional Chinese we’ve yet to discover, but should - here. 

Destination Flavour China with Adam Liaw starts 7.30pm, Wednesday 28 November on SBS and then on SBS On Demand. Visit the program page for recipes, videos and more.

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.

Stream free On Demand

Sichuan and Hunan

episode • Destination Flavour China • 

cooking • 

25m

G

episode • Destination Flavour China • 

cooking • 

25m

G