Today, I will introduce a simple version of Dong po rou(Dong po pork).
You can easily make this dish at home, which is usually found in specialized Chinese restaurants.
By making a sauce and slowly simmering it to infuse into the meat, even cooking beginners can successfully create this dish.
The tender lean meat and chewy fat combine beautifully with the sweet and savory sauce, making it a recommended dish when you crave uniquely flavored marinated meat.
Ingredients
(For 1.2kg of pork belly)
Measurement: Standard paper cup and tablespoon
- Pork belly (or pork shoulder): 1.2kg
- Cooking oil: About 4 tablespoons
- Water: 3 cups (540ml)
- Dark soy sauce: 1 cup (180ml)
- Cooking wine: 1 cup (180ml)
- Corn syrup: 2/3 cup (about 120ml)
- Brown sugar: 2/3 cup (about 120ml)
- Chunjang (Korean black bean paste): 2 tablespoons (mix well)
- Whole black pepper: About 30 pieces
- Star anise: 8 pieces
- Onion: 1 piece
- Garlic: 8 cloves (about 50g)
- Ginger: 1 piece (about the size of a garlic clove)
- Green onion: 1 stalk
- Bok choy: As desired
- Salt: About 1/2 tablespoon
Cooking Instructions
Cut the pork belly or pork shoulder into square pieces. Score the fat side in a crosshatch pattern. This helps the sauce penetrate better while simmering, enhancing the chewy texture of the fat. (Aesthetic presentation is a bonus!)
In a pan, heat about 4 tablespoons of cooking oil, placing the scored fat side down. Sear the pork on all sides until golden brown. Since the pork will simmer for a long time in the sauce, it doesn't need to be fully cooked inside at this stage; just achieve a nice Maillard reaction on the surface.
In the same pan used for searing the pork, add the following ingredients in order to make the Dong po rou sauce:
- Water: 3 cups (540ml)
- Dark soy sauce: 1 cup (180ml)
- Cooking wine: 1 cup (180ml)
- Corn syrup: 2/3 cup (about 120ml)
- Brown sugar: 2/3 cup (about 120ml)
- Chunjang: 2 tablespoons (mix well)
- Whole black pepper: About 30 pieces
- Star anise: 8 pieces
- Onion: 1 piece
- Garlic: About 8 cloves (about 50g)
- Ginger: 1 piece (about the size of a garlic clove)
- Green onion: 1 stalk
Add the previously seared pork to the sauce mixture. Keep the heat on low, cover the pan, and simmer for 1 hour.
After 1 hour, uncover the pan, flip the pork, cover again, and simmer for another 40 minutes.
While the pork is simmering, blanch the bok choy. Add about 1/2 tablespoon of salt to boiling water and blanch the bok choy for exactly 20 seconds. Blanching for too long will make the bok choy tough, so be quick.
Arrange the blanched bok choy on a plate and top it with the finished Dong po rou for a delicious combination.
Enjoy your homemade Dong po rou!
