Eel Rolled with Pork and Braised in Galangal

Method

1. 1 Remove the slime from the eel, then fillet it into long strips and spread them flat on a cutting board.
2. 2 Wrap the pork belly into a tube inside the eel fillet and tie it with blanched scallions.
3. 3 Grind the galangal until very fine; it must be ground, not milled, to prevent the release of juice and loss of flavor.
4. 4 Pan-fry the eel rolls for 3 minutes on each side, then add galangal, shrimp paste, and turmeric and simmer with 120 ml of water.
5. 5 Simmer over low heat for 25 minutes until the sauce thickens, then sprinkle with shredded betel leaves and pepper.

With an appliance

• Oven 55 min

  Replace the braising step in step 4: cover and braise the eel rolls with galangal on the middle rack of the oven at 170 degrees for 20 minutes; the betel leaves and pepper from step 5 can still be sprinkled after removing the pot from the oven.