This Week's Fancy Pants Meal: Taiwanese Pork Rice Bowl (卤肉饭)

(minus the rice cause, you know, diabetic)

I've decided that three plain meals a week to save money isn't gonna do it anymore, so moving forward I'm making two plain meals, and one fancy meal. And this one is Lu Rou Fan minus rice. My house smells like an Asian grocery right now.

# Lu Rou Fan (Taiwanese Braised Pork)

Universal Yums

3.0 whole star anise
1.0 whole cinnamon stick
6.0 whole cloves
3.0 whole bay leaves
2.0 tsp Sichuan peppercorns
0.5 whole orange peel
2.0 slices ginger (sliced thinly)
1.0 pound pork-belly (skin on) (cut into 1/4 inch sized pieces)
2.0 tsp vegetable oil
1.5 tbsp sugar
1.0 whole onion (diced)
8.0 whole shiitake mushrooms (diced)
0.25 cup sherry
5.0 tbsp soy sauce
2.0 cups water
4.0 whole hard boiled eggs

1 - Bundle together the star anise, cinnamon stick, cloves, bay leaves, peppercorns, orange peel and ginger in a cheese cloth or tea infuser.
2 - Bring a medium pot of water to a boil.
3 - Add the pork belly and blanch for 1 minute.
4 - Strain the meat and set aside.
5 - Heat the oil in a wok or large pan over low heat, then add the sugar. Heat the sugar until it starts to melt.
6 - Add the onion. Raise heat to medium-high and stir-fry for a minute.
7 - Add the mushrooms, stir-frying for another two minutes.
8 - Add the blanched pork, sherry, soy sauce and water. Stir while bringing the mixture to a boil.
9 - Once boiling, add the spice bundle and hard boiled eggs.
10 - Turn the heat to low and simmer for 1 1/2 hours, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking.
11 - When the meat is fall-apart tender, remove the spice bundle.
12 - Raise the heat to medium high, stirring occasionally for 5 minutes to thicken the sauce
13 - Serve over white rice and enjoy.

#cooking #thisweeksmeals