Name: Red braised ginger pork belly with pickled chillies
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 2 h 15 min
Total time: 2 h 25 min
Yield: Serves 6-8 as part of a buffet
Cuisine: Chinese
Ingredients: 2 ½kg pork belly rind removed, cut into 5cm pieces; 1 tbsp dark soy sauce; 200ml Shaohsing rice wine; 2 tbsp vegetable oil; 2 garlic cloves thinly sliced; thumb-sized piece ginger cut into matchsticks; pinch of chilli flakes; 100ml Chinese black vinegar (available from Waitrose); 140g soft brown sugar; 700ml vegetable stock; toasted sesame seeds; sliced spring onions; 2 red chillies sliced and soaked in rice wine vinegar for 1 hr, then drained; steamed white rice

Red braised ginger pork belly with pickled chillies

2 ½kg pork belly
rind removed, cut into 5cm pieces
1 tbsp dark soy sauce
200ml Shaohsing rice wine
2 tbsp vegetable oil
2 garlic cloves
thinly sliced
thumb-sized piece ginger
cut into matchsticks
pinch of chilli flakes
100ml Chinese black vinegar
(available from Waitrose)
140g soft brown sugar
700ml vegetable stock

To serve

toasted sesame seeds
sliced spring onions
2 red chillies
sliced and soaked in rice wine vinegar for 1 hr, then drained
steamed white rice

Method

step 1
Toss the pork with the soy and 1 tbsp of the rice wine. Leave for 1 hr or, even better, overnight in the fridge.
step 2
Heat some of the oil in a medium heavy-based saucepan. Brown the meat, in batches, on both sides and set aside. Add a little more oil and cook the garlic, ginger and chilli for 2-3 mins until golden.
step 3
Pour the vinegar, remaining rice wine, sugar and stock into the pan and bring to the boil. Add the pork, then turn down the heat, cover and simmer for 2 hrs or until the meat is tender. For the final 30 mins, remove the lid, increase the heat and let the liquid reduce until thick and syrupy. Serve scattered with the sesame seeds, spring onions and sliced chillies, with rice.