One of the comfort food that I always crave during colder weather is the Chinese five spice braised pork (or tau yu bak in Hokkien) - 酱油肉. Tau Yu literally means soy sauce in Hokkien and is used a lot in this recipe. A preferred cut of pork for this dish would be pork belly. The balanced texture of tender lean meat and fat after braising for hours in the wonderful soy sauce stock is heavenly.
Typically tofu (or bean curd), dried shiitake mushroom (after re-hydrated) and hard boil eggs are added to the braised pork. While I like tofu and mushroom, I just can't live with making braised pork without hard boil eggs. The eggs are so salivating after soaking in the soy solution. The eggs will turn slightly harder than normal hard boil egg but because of all the braising sauce, it taste so divine, and I normally need to have at least two to satisfy my 'lust'.
Ingredients:-
250g pork (keep them in big pieces)
1.5 tbsp dark soy sauce
2 tbsp soy sauce
500ml water
2 - 4 hard boiled eggs
½ tbsp oyster sauce
½tbsp rock sugar
½ tsp five spice powder
5 cloves garlic (do not peel skin)
dash of white pepper
4 dried mushroom (optional)
Bean curd (optional)
Methods:-
1. Boil eggs until 80% cooked (the white is set). Cool it, peel the shell and set aside.
2. Heat about 1tbsp of oil in a pot, and brown the pork belly on both sides at medium heat.
3. Pour half of dark soy sauce on one side of the pork, turn it over to seal and then do the same for the other side.
4. Pour water into the pot, add in garlic, rock sugar, soy sauce, oyster sauce, five spice powder and bring to boil. Skim off the impurities from time to time.
5. Turn the heat down to merely simmer the pork, add in eggs, mushroom & tofu / bean curd. If tofu is used, seared the tofu sides and do not cut it into too small pieces as they will break.
6. Simmer for an hour (or more) until the pork is tender. Taste the dish, and adjust the taste accordingly. Before serving, add a few dash of white pepper. Serve with steam rice.
The best part is, this is an almost effortless dish. Just throw everything in a pot, bring to boil and then let it simmer until the meat is tender, how easy can it be? Some small notes worth taking is that: use the Malaysian sweet caramel dark soy sauce if possible. If you really really can't find it, then substitute with kicap manis. The taste will not be the same but it'll do. Rock sugar is also important even though the quantity used is very little. It gives a delicious mellow hint of sweet taste to the dish.
Typically tofu (or bean curd), dried shiitake mushroom (after re-hydrated) and hard boil eggs are added to the braised pork. While I like tofu and mushroom, I just can't live with making braised pork without hard boil eggs. The eggs are so salivating after soaking in the soy solution. The eggs will turn slightly harder than normal hard boil egg but because of all the braising sauce, it taste so divine, and I normally need to have at least two to satisfy my 'lust'.
Ingredients:-
250g pork (keep them in big pieces)
1.5 tbsp dark soy sauce
2 tbsp soy sauce
500ml water
2 - 4 hard boiled eggs
½ tbsp oyster sauce
½tbsp rock sugar
½ tsp five spice powder
5 cloves garlic (do not peel skin)
dash of white pepper
4 dried mushroom (optional)
Bean curd (optional)
Methods:-
1. Boil eggs until 80% cooked (the white is set). Cool it, peel the shell and set aside.
2. Heat about 1tbsp of oil in a pot, and brown the pork belly on both sides at medium heat.
3. Pour half of dark soy sauce on one side of the pork, turn it over to seal and then do the same for the other side.
4. Pour water into the pot, add in garlic, rock sugar, soy sauce, oyster sauce, five spice powder and bring to boil. Skim off the impurities from time to time.
5. Turn the heat down to merely simmer the pork, add in eggs, mushroom & tofu / bean curd. If tofu is used, seared the tofu sides and do not cut it into too small pieces as they will break.
6. Simmer for an hour (or more) until the pork is tender. Taste the dish, and adjust the taste accordingly. Before serving, add a few dash of white pepper. Serve with steam rice.
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