Chinese Red Braised Pork Belly

This a meat-eater recipe - braised pork belly with quail eggs. It is super easy to make, and I am sure you gonna love sticky, succulent pork and flavorful eggs covered in a red, glossy sauce.

INGREDIENTS (Serves 4 people)

• 680g / 1.5 lb of skin-on pork belly
• 50g / ¼ cup of white sugar
• 3 tbsp of Chinese cooking wine
• 3 tbsp of soy sauce
• 2 tbsp of oyster sauce
• 1.5 tbsp of Sichuan dou ban jiang
• 600ml / 2.5 cups of water
• 2 inches of ginger, sliced thinly
• 3 scallions, cut into stalks
• 1/2 tsp of five-spice powder
• 24 quail eggs

Diced scallions as garnish

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Cut the pork belly into 1-inch thick strips then dice them into cubes.
2. Fill a big pot with 2-3 liters of water, add the pork belly, and bring it to a boil over medium heat. Please partially put on the lid. Otherwise, the water will overflow when it comes to a boil.
3. Skim the scum using a sieve, remove the pork from the pot, and set it aside. This step is called blanching, a popular method to treat meat in Chinese cuisine. The purpose is to eliminate the foamy scum to get a clear glossy sauce at the end.
4. Preheat the clay pot and add 2 tsp of oil and 1/4 cup of sugar. Stir over medium-low heat for a few minutes to caramelize it. If you don't have a clay pot, use a heavy-duty Dutch oven, a pressure cooker, or a slow cooker.
5. Once the caramel sugar is producing foamy bubbles, add the blanched pork belly, along with 3 tbsp of Chinese cooking wine, to drop the temperature of the clay pot so you don't burn the sugar. Stir for a minute to evaporate the alcohol.
6. Toss in some ginger slices and scallion stalks. Season it with 3 tbsp of soy sauce, 2 tbsp of oyster sauce, and 1.5 tbsp of Sichuan dou ban jiang.
7. Pour in 600g / 2.5 cups of water and stir well. Last, add 1/2 tsp of five spice powder to give the dish a nice complex aroma.
8. Simmer the pork at low heat for 1.5 hours.
9. Meanwhile, boil the quail eggs for 3 minutes. If using chicken eggs, you will have to boil them for 8 minutes.
10. Peel the quail eggs and add them to the clay pot. Braise them for the rest of the time or until the pork is tender.
11. Discard the scallions and ginger because they are soggy now.
12. Turn the heat to high and constantly stir to reduce the braising liquid until it becomes thick and glossy. This will take about 5 minutes.
13. Serve with white rice.