Ingredients

• 250g Pork Belly
• 300ml Water
• 1 Chilli
• Large knob of ginger pealed
• 4 Large Cloves of garlic pealed
• 1 White onion
• 4tbsp Gluten free soy sauce
• 2tbsp chinese five spice
• 1 Star anise
• 3 Cloves
• 3tbsp Rice wine vinegar
• 4tbsp Sugar

KIKKOMAN Tamari Gluten Free Soy Sauce 1000 ml

Method

1. Firstly, you need to chop up your pork belly into cubes. To do this I recommend putting your meat in the freezer for around 1-2 hours before hand. This will make cutting the meat much easier.
2. Once you have chopped your meat, you need to blanch it. Put your pork chunks in a large pot and fill the pot up with cold water so that the meat is covered. Place this pot over medium-high heat. A foamy layer will start to form at the top of the water. Use a spoon to remove this. Once most of the foamy layer has been removed and the water has begun to boil, remove the pot from the heat and drain off the meat, discarding of the blanching water. Dry of your pork cubes with a clean dish towel or paper towels.
3. Wipe down the inside of your pot to make sure there is no water in it. Add a couple tablespoons to the pot and heat over high. Add your pork cubes to the hot oil and allow to brown and crisp up slightly. Once the pork looks golden on most sides remove it from the pan. Remove most of the excess oil from the pan too.
4. Remove the skin of your onion, chop it in half, and remove the ends. Place both halves into the pot cut side down and sear for 3-4 minutes. Now reduce the heat to medium and add your chilli, ginger, garlic, cloves, star anise, and Chinese five spice. Toast all of this for a further 2 minutes. If the pan begins to get dry within this time add a splash of water.
5. Now add your pork belly back to the pot along with the soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, water, and 2tbsp of the sugar. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for around 1 hour/until a lot of the liquid has gone.
6. Once there is just about a centimetre or 2 of liquid left in the pot remove the cloves, star anise and vegetables. Add the last 2tbsp of sugar to the pot and turn the heat up to medium-high. Make sure you are stirring the pot regularly and keeping a close eye on it now, otherwise it could burn. The leftover braising liquid will quickly start to caramelise, thicken up and turn into a sort of glaze. Once this happens remove it from the heat.
7. Serve this on a bed of rice and top with sliced chilli, sliced ginger, chopped coriander and serve with a side of seared pak choi.