Twice-Cooked Pork

Ever since I first started planning to live in China for a full year, one of my biggest goals was to learn how to cook authentic, delicious Chinese food...and this week I began to work towards that goal! The very first dish that I made was Hui Guo Rou, or Twice-Cooked Pork. It's one of my all time favorite Chinese dishes, and my own version turned out better than I had ever expected.

It basically tastes like bacon. For dinner.

As part of this blog, I've decided to update it with my favorite Chinese recipes, and hopefully bring a little of China to my friends and family back home. The recipes that I use all come from Fuschia Dunlop's Land of Plenty, which I give the highest of recommendations. If you want to make real, true Chinese food, only Fuschia's book will do. But since I don't want to plagiarize her recipes on my blog, I've found a recipe online that is similar enough to still do the dish justice. Now, with out further ado, here is the recipe for Twice-Cooked Pork!


Twice Cooked Pork
Credit to Traditional Chinese Recipes

Gathering together the ingredients may take a bit of effort: the traditional hui guo rou uses several ingredients that will only be found in Asian groceries, including green garlic (saun miao), Sichuan chili bean paste (dou ban jiang) and sweet bean paste (tian main jiang) . Dunlop points out that one can substitute hoisin sauce for the sweet bean paste, but its distinctive sweetnesss and flavor is a bit overpowering.

12 oz pork belly, skin on

3 green garlic (suan miao) or leeks (sliced diagonally) 2 1/2 - 3 oz.)
1" x 1/2 " pc ginger, sliced thin
1 TAB rice wine or sherry (Shao Xing Chiu)
2 tsp Sichuan chili bean paste (duo ban jian)
1 TAB Sweet bean paste (tian mian jiang)
1 round tsp sugar 
2 tsp fermented black beans (dou chi)
1 tsp dark soy
1 Tab peanut or other vegetable oil


Bring 2/3 quarts of water (you can throw in a couple of chopped scallions and 3 or 4 slices of ginger if the stock will be used later) to a gentle boil; add meat and, depending on the thickness of the belly, simmer 20 to 30 minutes. Drain and allow to cool in the refrigerator at least a couple of hours--if possible overnight. When completely cool, cut the belly piece into sections so that when it is sliced thin across the striations of fat and meat, the pieces will be approximately 1" x 2" x 1/8". 

Make ready all the ingredients on the list. When the oil is smoking hot, stir fry pork slices until nicely brown on the edges. Don't overcook. Remember, you're frying what is basically bacon, so if you cook the pork until it is well browned, it will be crisp and somewhat tough. Fry it until it is lightly brown, and the edges begin to crisp and curl. When lightly browned, splash with wine, move the meat up the sides of the wok and add ginger slices, sliced green garlic or softened leeks, and chili bean paste. If you are using leeks, remove dryer outer sheaths, slice as indicated and stir fry the leak slivers to soften them. Stir fry for 30 seconds, add sweet bean paste for 30 seconds, and then toss in sugar and dark soy.  Toss the mixture in the wok for a minute or so, plate the hui guo rou and garnish with sesame oil.


Eat as an entree, with rice and steamed veggies as a side!