Hakka Salted Pork Stir-fry 蒜苗炒鹹豬肉

This is actually the first dish I made after deciding to revive this blog, but because it takes a few days to marinate, it sort of fell out my priority post list.

Salted pork is something I love ordering when we eat out, it's just so simple but packed with flavor. It also goes down really really well with a bowl of rice. To my knowledge, salted pork (鹹豬肉 Xián zhūròu) is a Hakka dish that can be found in almost all Hakka restaurants. It's usually served by itself, sliced, and paired with fresh garlic sprouts (may be replaced with leeks). Or they can be stir-fried into another dish which will be featured below. It's marinated in a brine of mainly Sichuan peppercorns, black pepper, rice wine, and salt for about 2 - 3 days and the end product tastes like a Hakka version of bacon. Sure, it does take a few days to produce salted pork, but once you go that extra mile, the possibilities with this piece of meat is endless! Pan-fry it and throw it into a bun for an instant sandwich. Or maybe cut it into small pieces and add it to your omelette. Give your typical western dishes a kick of Asian flavor with this pork belly. But I do have to warn you though, like many other Hakka dishes out there, salted pork is kind of greasy. But who cares, bacon is greasy as sin and nobody seems to care, so why should you!

Hakka Salted Pork 客家鹹豬肉
INGREDIENTS:

• 300g pork belly
• 2 teaspoons coarse black pepper
• 2 teaspoons Sichuan peppercorns
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon sugar
• 1 tablespoon garlic, minced
• 2 tablespoons rice wine

METHOD:

1. Rinse the pork belly and pat dry with paper towels. Cut in half in the pieces are too long/big. 
2. In a heated pain, add the black pepper, Sichuan peppercorns, salt, and sugar. Fry until fragrant, about 1 minute. 
3. Remove the spice mixture and grind coarsely with a mortar and pestle. 
4. In a ziplock bag, add the spice mixture, garlic, rice wine, and pork belly. Zip it up and mix until the pork belly in evenly coated in the marinade. 
5. Refrigerate for 2 to 3 days. 
6. When ready to cook, remove the pork belly from the ziplock bag and rinse off the excess spices on the surface. 
7. You can roast the pork belly as a whole and slice into thin pieces once the meat is done. OR you can slice the meat first and pay fry it. Serve with sliced garlic sprouts (or replace with scallions or leeks). 

Hakka Salted Pork 客家鹹豬肉

Hakka Salted Pork Stir-fry 蒜苗炒鹹豬肉
INGREDIENTS:

• 1 tablespoon of olive oil 
• 2 cloves of garlic, sliced
• Fresh chili peppers, sliced (optional)
• Salted pork, rinsed and sliced
• Handful of garlic sprouts

METHOD:

1. In a heated pan or wok, add the oil. 
2. When the oil is heated, add the garlic and chili peppers, fry until fragrant, about 1 minute. 
3. Add the salted pork and fry until the meat is cooked. 
4. Throw in a handful of sliced garlic sprouts (may be replaced by leeks or scallions). Stir-fry on high heat for 30 seconds. Plate and serve. 

Hakka Salted Pork Stir-fry 蒜苗炒鹹豬肉