Authentic Pork Belly Bun

• Meat

  • 300 g Pork belly

• Produce

  • 1 Chili pepper, dried
  • 2 cups Cilantro
  • 2 pieces Ginger
  • 40 g Green onion
  • 2 Jalapeno pepper

• Condiments

  • 3 tbsp Soy sauce, light
  • 1 tsp Soy sauce, dark

• Baking & Spices

  • 200 g All purpose flour plus extra to dust hands
  • 1 Cinnamon stick
  • 3 Cloves
  • 1 Pod cardamom
  • 1 Star anise, whole
  • 2 tsp Sugar
  • 1/2 tsp Yeast, dry

• Beer, Wine & Liquor

  • 2 tbsp Shaoxing wine

Found on omnivorescookbook.com

Ingredients

• 300 grams (10 ounce) pork belly (lean:fat 7:3)
• 1 dried chili pepper
• 3 cloves
• 1 pod cardamom
• 1 whole star anise
• 1 cinnamon stick (5 centimeters / 2 inches in length)
• 2 pieces ginger
• 40 grams (1.5 ounces) green onion, white part
• 3 tablespoons light soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon dark soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons shaoxing wine
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• 200 grams all purpose flour plus extra to dust hands
• 1/2 teaspoon dry yeast
• 2 cups cilantro, chopped
• 2 jalapeno pepper (or bell pepper), chopped

Directions

• Place pork belly in a medium sized pot and add enough water to cover it. Bring to a boil over medium high heat. Turn to low heat and simmer for 5 minutes. Discard boiling liquid and rinse pork belly with tap water (be careful when handling it; the pork belly is hot).
• Add pork belly and 3 cups water to a medium sized dutch oven. Add chili pepper, clove, cardamom, star anise, cinnamon, ginger and green onion. Bring to a boil over medium high heat, then turn to lowest heat and simmer, covered, for 30 minutes. Add light soy sauce, dark soy sauce, shaoxing wine and sugar into the pot and stir with a ladle several times to mix everything well. Continue to simmer, covered, for an additional 1 hour and 30 minutes, until the pork gets super tender and can easily be separated with a fork. The broth should have thickened slightly and become very salty. If the broth is still thin, reduce it by boiling over medium heat, uncovered, for 15 to 30 minutes. Please be advised, when you prepare a bun, you will need to drizzle 1 to 2 tablespoons of broth on the pork. You should have at least 1 cup of broth in the pot after reducing.
• Put the flour into a large bowl, add dry yeast, and mix well with a fork. Add 120 milliliters (half a cup) cold water, mix with a fork or a pair of chopsticks, stirring in a clockwise direction, until water is fully incorporated with flour. Dust both hands with flour and start by using one hand to knead until dough begins to form. The dough should be soft, but shouldn’t stick to the bottom of the bowl. Blend in more flour if the dough sticks to the hands, 1 teaspoon at a time. Dust a cutting board or working surface with flour and transfer the dough onto the cutting board. Continue kneading the dough for a few minutes, until the surface becomes smooth. Cover with plastic wrap or a large bowl and let it rest for 10 minutes.
• Dust both hands again and knead the dough a few times. Divide the dough into 4 equal parts, and shape each one into a ball by hand. Cover the dough balls with plastic wrap or a large bowl, and let them rest for 10 minutes.
• Dust both hands and the cutting board. Place one dough ball on the cutting board, then press it with the palm into a round shape. Use a rolling pin to flatten the dough to 6 millimeters (1/4 inch) thick, keeping it round, then set aside. Shape the rest of the dough balls the same way.
• Heat a nonstick skillet on medium heat. When skillet is hot, place a round piece of dough into skillet (cook one or two doughs at a time, depending on the size of the skillet). Use a spatula to turn the dough every 30 seconds, until both sides turn golden brown. Transfer finished buns to a plate or cooling rack.
• When the buns have cooled down a bit, use a knife to split them horizontally, half way through. Separate the inside of the bun with your fingers, taking care not to tear the two layers apart. The bun should form a pocket.
• (option 1 - to assemble the bun the authentic street food way)
• Transfer one piece of pork belly onto a cutting board, cut it coarsely into small chunks. Place a handful of cilantro and a handful of jalapeno on top of the pork. Use a knife to chop and mix everything together. Use a spoon to stuff the pork mixture into the bun, drizzle a spoonful broth onto the pork, serve immediately.
• (option 2 - if you want to keep the texture of the pork belly)
• Transfer one piece of pork belly onto a cutting board and cut it into small squares or bite size pieces. Mix in chopped cilantro and jalapeno. Use a spoon to stuff the pork mixture into the bun, drizzle a spoonful of broth onto the pork, serve immediately.