Secret Recipe Braised Pork with Chestnuts
Every Mid-Autumn Festival marks the chestnut season when the aroma of chestnuts fills the streets. When soft and sweet chestnuts meet perfectly marbled pork belly, a golden, caramelized, aromatic dish packed with flavor and nutrition comes to life. The tender and glistening pork belly is rich but not overwhelming, while the golden chestnuts are sweet, creamy, and melt in your mouth. Cook up a pot during the Mid-Autumn Festival to let your family savor the taste of autumn, evoking nostalgic memories of childhood flavors. Chestnuts are sweet and warm in nature, benefiting the spleen, stomach, and kidneys. They nourish the stomach, strengthen the spleen, replenish the kidneys, promote blood circulation, and stop bleeding, all while offering a unique aroma. Pork belly, rich in nutrients, offers a burst of collagen with every bite! I also have a little secret to make this dish even better: add a generous tablespoon of Lee Kum Kee's Doubanjiang soy bean paste. Give it a try!
Ingredients
Steps
Prepare the ingredients.
Back in the day, elders would prepare homemade Doubanjiang paste to eat or cook with various meats. Now, with Lee Kum Kee Doubanjiang Soy Bean Paste, it’s a treasure! Naturally fermented, healthy, and bright in color, it enhances both the color and flavor of dishes. I always keep some in my fridge!
Cut pork belly with skin into chunks slightly larger than Mahjong tiles.
Rinse the pork and blanch it in cold water with cooking wine, ginger, and onion. Once the water boils, immediately remove and drain for later use.
Wash the chestnuts and make shallow cuts or criss-cross cuts.
Boil the chestnuts in salted water for 3-5 minutes, then peel them for later use. Fresh chestnuts softened by boiling in salted water make peeling easy. Give it a try!
In a non-stick pan, add the pork chunks without oil. Stir-fry on low heat until slightly browned and some oil is released. Set aside.
In a heated pan with cold oil, add the yellow rock sugar. Stir it over low heat until it melts into a light caramel color. Be careful not to burn it.
Add the pork chunks and ginger slices. Stir-fry evenly, coating the meat with caramel color.
Add bay leaves, star anise, Sichuan peppercorns, and green onion (leave some for garnish).
Add the chestnuts, 2 tbsp of yellow rice wine, 2 tbsp of light soy sauce, and 1 tbsp of dark soy sauce.
Here's the secret! Add 1 tbsp of Lee Kum Kee Doubanjiang Soy Bean Paste.
Pour in hot water to cover the braised pork. Always use hot water to maintain the meat's tenderness. Cover and simmer on low heat for about 50 minutes. Finally, reduce the sauce but don’t overdo it.
Done! Sprinkle some chopped green onions and the secret recipe braised pork with chestnuts is ready!
The tender, succulent braised pork is infused with the aroma of chestnuts. Even as someone who avoids fatty meat, I find this irresistible! Drizzle the sauce over white rice, and you’ll be coming back for thirds... This classic home-style dish isn’t hard to make!