How to Make Authentic Twice-cooked Pork
Twice-cooked pork, originating from the Song Dynasty(960-1279 AD), was known as "Stir-Fried Pork" in ancient times. The term "twice cooked" refers to the cooking method where ingredients are first boiled and then stir-fried, indicating a double cooking process involving two rounds of cooking in a wok.
The status of twice cooked meat in Sichuan cuisine is very important, is considered to be the first of Sichuan cuisine, the embodiment of Sichuan cuisine. As the saying goes, "If you haven't tried twice-cooked pork when visiting Sichuan, it's like you haven't really been to Sichuan."
The meat slices are fragrant but not dry, fatty but not greasy, with a bright red color, slightly salty and savory, mildly spicy, leaving a sweet aftertaste, and emitting a tantalizing aroma.
- 1/4 stalk scallion
- 4 pieces sliced ginger
- 15 milliliters cooking wine
- 250 grams pork belly
- 3 stalks green garlic
- 10 grams sweet bean sauce
- 10 grams Pixian Doubanjiang
Boil the pork belly with the ingredients for boiled meat until it's medium well, then remove it from the wok.
Cook for about 20 minutes, then test with chopsticks. If the chopsticks can easily penetrate the meat without any blood flowing out, it's done.During the cooking process, try to skim off the foam as much as possible to keep the broth clear and reduce any fishy taste.
Remove the meat to cool and cut into thin slices.
Pat the green garlic with the back of a knife.
Patting it lightly is to bring out the flavor of the green garlics.Slice the green garlics diagonally into sections.
Heat a small amount of oil in a hot wok, then add the sliced pork belly and stir-fry until it releases oil.
Use a small amount of oil because the pork belly will release oil during stir-frying, and not adding oil will cause it to stick to the wok.Add Pixian doubanjiang and sweet bean sauce, stir-fry well.
Add the green garlic segments, stir-fry evenly, and then it's ready to serve.
- The key point of stir-frying twice-cooked pork is to maintain high heat throughout the process.
- Please try to slice the meat thinly, but not too thin, otherwise the meat will break apart during stir-frying.
- Green garlics are a crucial ingredient. When their flavor collides with the twice-cooked pork, it creates a unique taste. Please try not to substitute them with other vegetables.
- The two essential sauces for making twice-cooked pork are Pixian doubanjiang and sweet bean sauce. Both of these sauces have a high salt content, so there's no need to add extra salt.
- When putting the meat slices into the wok, the oil temperature must be very high.
- After the meat slices release oil, the edges should slightly curl up, which indicates they're done correctly.