Braised Pork Belly

Tender, succulent pork belly in a fragrant sauce of ginger, green onion, and warm spices. A comforting Chinese dish made easy. Adapted from Every Grain of Rice: Simple Chinese Home Cooking, by Fuchsia Dunlop

📝 Ingredients

• 1 1/2 pounds boneless pork belly with skin
• 2 tablespoons high heat oil (such as avocado oil or other neutrally flavored oil)
• 4 thick slices fresh ginger (unpeeled, about a 2-inch piece)
• 3 green onions (white parts only, chop green parts for garnish)
• 2 tablespoons Shaoxing wine
• 1 1/2 cups low-sodium chicken stock
• 1 teaspoon dark soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 1 star anise
• pinch ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon fine sea salt

👨‍🍳 Instructions

1. 1Cut pork belly into 1-inch chunks.
2. 2Heat oil in a large, heavy bottomed pan over medium-high heat until nearly smoking. Add ginger and green onion whites; cook and stir until fragrant. Add pork; cook and stir 2 minutes, then drizzle with Shaoxing wine.
3. 3Add chicken stock, soy sauce, honey, star anise, cinnamon and salt and stir well to combine; bring mixture to boil. Once boiling, reduce heat to low; cover and simmer for at least 1 1/2 hours and up to 3 hours. Stir occasionally and do not allow the liquid to boil dry; add more stock or water if needed.
4. 4Remove and discard star anise, ginger and green onion whites. Taste and adjust seasoning as needed. To thicken any liquid that remains, remove lid and increase heat to medium-high; cook and stir to thicken sauce and coat pork belly. Serve garnished with chopped green onion.