Here’s another delicious Chinese braised pork recipe. Similar to Lu Rou Fan, Rou Zao Fan braises pork in a spiced, soy-sauce-based liquid along with eggs, served over rice. One could argue that Rou Zao Fan is better for you than the pork belly used in Lu Rou Fan, but my guess is most nutritionist would say it’s still not healthy.
Either way, this is a great recipe, and it’s easy to make. Make sure to serve it over lots of high-quality rice.
What you’ll need
- 4 oz. mushrooms, coarsely chopped (shiitake work best, and you can use reconstituted dried ones, if you like)
- 1 pound ground pork
- 3T neutral oil
- 1 cup onions or preferably shallots, finely diced
- 1T ginger, minced
- 3 star anise
- 3T Shaoxing wine (or sake or white wine, in a pinch)
- 1T white sugar
- 2T light soy sauce
- 1T dark soy sauce
- 1T oyster sauce
- 0.5t ground white pepper
- 0.25t five spice powder
- 1.5 cups vegetable or mushroom broth, or you can use water
- 3 – 4 whole eggs, hard-boiled and peeled (one for each serving)
- 0.25 cups scallions, sliced
What to do
In a wok over medium-high heat add 2T of oil. When it gets hot, add the ginger and shallots and cook for a couple of minutes until the shallots are translucent. Add the mushrooms and cook for a couple more minutes.
Increase the heat to high and add the last tablespoon of oil, along with the ground pork and star anise. Fry the pork until it is well browned and almost cooked through.
Add the Shaoxing wine or sake, then the sugar, both soy sauces, the oyster sauce, white pepper and five-spice powder. Stir everything well, then add the 1.5 cups of broth or water.
Bring the mixture to a boil, then cover and reduce the heat to a low simmer, letting it cook like that for about 15-20 minutes.
After the pork is done simmering, submerge the cooked eggs in the simmering liquid, ensuring that they’re completely submerged. Add more water, if needed. Turn up the heat to a more vigorous simmer, let the eggs heat up for about 10-15 minutes. This will give time for some of the liquid to cook off, too. Cook a little longer at a higher temperature if you need to cook off more liquid.
Right before serving with hot rice, stir in the sliced scallions. Remove the eggs and cut them in half, lengthwise, and add them to the rice before you spoon the pork over the dish.
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