Taiwanese Braised Pork Rice (Lu Rou Fan)

 

Ingredients: (serves 2)

300 g. pork belly (skin on)

3 shallots (peeled and thinly sliced)

2 cloves garlic (peeled and coarsely chopped)

1 tbsp. spring onion (white section only, thinly sliced)

2 hard boiled eggs (peeled)

1 1/2 tbsp. brown sugar - to taste

1 1/2 tbsp. light soy sauce

300 ml. water

Dash of ground white pepper

1/2 tsp. five spice powder

1/4 tsp. salt

Garnish with blanched bok choy

Methods:

1. Place pork belly in a pot of cold (room temperature) water and bring to a boil.  When water is boiling, remove the pork.  Scrap the skin with knife to remove any hair or dirt.  Cut pork belly into small pieces, preferably within half to 1 cm. thick.
2. In a pan, stir fry the pork belly over medium heat  and constantly stir to ensure even cooking.  Once oil is rendered from the pork, dish out the pork onto a bowl, leaving the oil in the pan.
3. Fry the shallots with the heated oil (low heat) until golden; add back the pork into the pan.  Add brown sugar and stir fry to combine.  Once the sugar is caramalised, add in scallion and garlic.  Add light soy sauce and season with salt, white pepper and five spice powder.  Stir to combine all the ingredients.
4. Add peeled hard boiled eggs.  Fill the pan with sufficient water, just enough to submerge all the ingredients.  Bring it to a boil, then reduce the heat to cook it at barely simmering temperature.  Braise the pork, and egg low and slow until cooked.  In between braising, stir to ensure even cooking.
5. Skim off excess oil floating on top before serving.
6. To serve: Scoop rice into a small bowl, press it with a rice scoop, turn the bowl over a serving dish.  Serve with the braised pork, egg and blanched bok choy at the side.

I serve another portion of this yummylicious braised pork with noodles, Kuching's popular Kolo Mee, and with the must-have condiment of green pickled chilies.

So, what is your choice of serving?? With rice or noodles?  No worries, both are yummylicious!

I adapted this recipe from 'tasteasianfood.com' with slight adjustment to suit my cooking preference.