Overdue Entry

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Welcome to a new year and a long over due update. Over due might be a bit of an understatement in that is been well over 5 years since my las entry. How time flies!

Any way I will start off the new year (2018), with a brand new entry and recipe.

Orange Braised Pork Belly

Coming from Hawaii`i and with a Chinese Dad, it stands to reason that pork was a regular commodity in our family. With quick trip to Chinatown on Saturday morning’s with Dad, we’d come back home with all sorts of goodies, including pork hash, pork managua, char s

iu and of course roasted pork belly. One pork dish reserved for restaurant outings, Kau Yuk, a deliciously fatty dish made with pork belly and traditionally cooked three times (boiled, fried and roasted) and cured with nam yi, a fermented red bean paste. This paste gives the the pork belly dish that very distinctive red color.

So this Chinese dish Kau Yuk, provided me with the inspiration, but that’s where the similarity ends for this particular recipe. There are many variations to Asian style braising and this version is a thrice cooked style as well.

The way to go, if you’re lucky and have a local Asian market where there are pork butchers, like a Chinatown, that’s gonna be a good choice. I happen to live in Chinatown in downtown Honolulu, so i have easy access to multiple sources for fresh cuts of pork. I asked the butcher to cut me a two pound slab for this recipe. The bone is still in, so I’ll cut it out. Cut the meat length wise first so you have two strips about 2 1/2” wide. Then cut the strips again across it’s length into 2 1/2 cubes. Cover and set aside for now. 

In the mean time, cut the leek into three sections and then half, peel and rough cut the onion, and cut the carrot in three inch lengths and cut into 1/2” sticks. Peel and slice the ginger and garlic, add all these ingredients to a 4 qt. pot.

In a shallow pan, add the corn starch, salt and pepper and combine. Dredge the pork belly cubes in the corn starch mix and coat well. In a large skillet, on medium high heat add the sesame oil and butter, brown the pork belly cubes on all sides. When browned on all sides, transfer the pork belly cubes to the vegetable pot, add the dry

ingredients, brown sugar, star anise, cinnamon stick, bay leaves, pour the two cups of orange juice, soy sauce, 1/3 a cup of the orange liqueur and water. Squeeze half an orange to the mix and bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium low and braise for two hours. 

Section the remaining orange for garnish. Squeeze the remaining pulp into the pot.

After braising in the pot for two hours, remove the pork belly cubes and set aside. In a separate bowl, strain the braising sauce and discard the solid items. Drain the original skillet used to brown the pork bellies and return to heat, deglaze the pan with 1/3 cup of the orange liqueur scrapping the brown bits in the pan. Add the sauce from the braise and strain again, stirring and bring mixture to boil, then simmer and reduce the sauce to a thicker consistency and add the pork bellies back to the pan and continue to simmer for another 15 minutes. Serve with rice or noodles.

Ingredients

2 lbs Pork Belly

2- Oranges

1- Stick of Carrots

1- Vidalia Onion

1- Stalk Fresh Leek

3- Stalks Green Onions

5-6 - garlic cloves

1 1/2- Thumbs of Fresh Ginger

2- bay leaves

1- teaspoon Star Anise

1- teaspoon Rock Salt

1- teaspoon Coarse Black Pepper

1/2- Cup Corn Starch

1- stick cinnamon

1/3 cup brown sugar

2- Cups Orange Juice

2- Cups Water

2/3 - Cup Cointreau or Orange Liqueur (optional)

1/3 - Cup Soy Sauce

1- Tablespoon Hot Sauce

2- Tablespoons Butter

1- Tablespoon Sesame Oil

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