Mao's braised pork

Method

1. 1 Boil the pork belly for 15 minutes with ginger, then let it cool and cut it into 4 cm cubes.
2. 2 Fry the meatballs in a dry pan for 8 minutes until the fat renders out and the outside is golden brown.
3. 3 Caramelize the rock sugar until it turns amber, then roll the meat in it until it has a reddish-brown color.
4. 4 Pour Shaoxing wine, soy sauce, and hot water over the meat until it's half submerged, then add whole dried chili peppers and cinnamon sticks.
5. 5 The smallest fire duration is 1 hour and 10 minutes; Thieu Son village uses whole dried chilies for the dry spiciness instead of chili sauce.

With an appliance

• Pressure cooker 55 min

  Replace step 5: cook in a pressure cooker for 25 minutes at high pressure, then release the pressure naturally and simmer for 10 minutes with the lid open.