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There are so many aspects of it that I like: the glossy, dark, less-sweet-than-sweet sauce; the short ingredient list; the fact that it cooks so much more quickly than a whole pork shoulder; and the fact that you can use the braising time to experiment with sides like rice and vegetables or, I dunno, munch on a negroni and potato chips. The leftovers were wonderful and it was kid-friendly, so it's also friendly in real life. And how could you not want to make it on the gloomy, chilly pre-Halloween weekend we have coming up with a name like pork Bite?
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6 to 8 servings,
2 hours and 30 minutes.
Ingredient
8 ounces palm sugar, finely chopped, or 1 cup dark brown sugar
3/4 cup fish sauce
3 tablespoons canola or another neutral oil
4 pounds boneless pork shoulder, cut into 2-inch-by-3-inch chunks
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 cup thinly sliced shallots
1 (2-inch-by-1-inch) piece fresh ginger, peeled and julienned
2 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
2 to 3 Thai chilies (or 1 serrano), stemmed and thinly sliced
3 cups coconut water
Instruction
In a medium heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium-low heat, add the palm or brown sugar. Cook for 8 to 10 minutes, stirring regularly to prevent scorching, until the sugar dissolves. Remove the pan from the heat once the sugar has melted completely and is smooth, then add the fish sauce while still stirring carefully. The mixture might freeze; if it does, put it back over low heat and stir it until it's smooth.
preheat the oven to 300 f
.The canola oil should be heated in a sizable Dutch oven over high heat; although it is available at many lower price points, I prefer this pot for this and most braises. Salt and pepper the pork chunks on both sides. Some of the pork chunks should be added to the hot oil when it is hot, and they should be seared for 8 minutes or so, but it took me much longer. Repeat with the remaining pork, then transfer to a baking sheet with a rim.
Reduce the heat to medium-low and add the shallots once all the meat has been browned. Stirring frequently, sauté the shallots for about 2 minutes, then add the ginger, garlic, and chilies and simmer for an additional minute.
Add the caramel sauce and coconut water to the saucepan along with the pork and any accumulated juices. If the meat pieces are entirely submerged, transfer the meat and liquid to another pot. The meat chunks should stick out above the level of the liquid. Once the liquid has boiled, turn down the heat so that it is only simmering. Place the saucepan in the oven while it is covered.
Check that the liquid is simmering gently under the lid after 15 minutes of cooking. Reduce the oven's temperature to 275°F for the remainder cooking time if it is boiling extremely fiercely. The meat should be tender but not falling apart after 70 minutes of cooking the pork with the lid back on. When the exposed pieces of pork are caramelized and the meat is tender enough to easily be pulled back with a fork, as you hope it will on your dish, uncover the pot and cook for another 30 minutes. Serve with rice after taking out of the oven.
We also had carrots (I cut them with a julienne peeler and doused them with a couple glugs of rice vinegar, an equal amount of water, plus sugar and salt to taste and let them sit in the fridge and lightly pickle until the pork was done and up to two days, then drizzled it with a little toasted sesame oil before eating), yellow wax beans (trimmed, cooked for 2 minutes, plunged in ice water, then drained), with addition to providing extra sliced scallions and chilies on the side for adults who prefer them to add to their plates at their discretion.]
HOISIN SAUCE WITH PORK AND ASPARAGUS
We all need those lunches that take 20 minutes, right? That's exactly how long it took to prepare this dish, too. It's just a straightforward saute of diced pork tenderloin, asparagus, and hoisin sauce (green beans would also work fantastically with this). On a weeknight, serve this over a bed of brown rice for the easiest, tastiest dinner. The best part is that these would make the ideal leftovers to bring to work the following day!
Thus, this is how you make it:
We'll start by sautéing some chopped pork tenderloin and fresh asparagus. Don't forget to add salt and pepper to the dish.Add some more garlic to the skillet after removing the pork, asparagus, and placing them on a platter.Stir in the hoisin and mirin, making sure they are thoroughly blended, once the garlic has developed a pleasant fragrance. Add the pork and asparagus back to the skillet once the sauce has slightly reduced, making careful to coat it with the delicious hoisin sauce. If you want a little amount of heat in your dish at this stage, add the sambal oelek.
Please eat this dish with a side of brown rice (or white rice, or even quinoa). You could even add some Sriracha to the dish. Cassie, I know you'll need it desperately!
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Servings:3-4
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