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Chinese Five Spice Pork Belly Recipe

August 22, 2016 by Jeanette 10 Comments

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Chinese Five Spice Pork Belly is a special occasion dish that always receives rave reviews.
Chinese Five Spice Pork Belly - I make this for special occasions and it always receives rave reviews. Serve with steamed Chinese buns, hoisin sauce and sliced cucumbers for an appetizer ~ https://jeanetteshealthyliving.com

Pork belly buns are very popular these days. It’s funny, because pork belly is a very traditional Chinese food. I’m glad people are finally discovering just how delicious this cut of meat is. It’s definitely a special occasion dish.

Chinese Five Spice Pork Belly - I make this for special occasions and it always receives rave reviews. Serve with steamed Chinese buns, hoisin sauce and sliced cucumbers for an appetizer ~ https://jeanetteshealthyliving.com

I made this Chinese Five Spice Pork Belly recipe for the twins’ 21st birthday and for an Asian themed party recently. It has received rave reviews from everyone who’s tried it.

My Aunt Florence made Chinese Pork Belly when my family visited her apartment in the Bronx as a kid. I didn’t appreciate how decadent pork belly was at the time – I just knew it was simply delicious. I did remember that my aunt’s version was steamed, not braised.

I scoured several Chinese cookbooks to figure out how to make this special dish. First of all, you need to find some good quality pork belly. This is a special occasion meal, so this is not the time to skimp on the fat. I actually bought a leaner pork belly the first time around and found it way too dry. Whole Foods carries pork belly and I’ve had good results with it.

The cooking process is a two step process.  The second part of the cooking process is similar to braising, but it is done in a large steamer. The slow steaming process helps release a lot of the extra fat from the meat, which can be easily skimmed off if you refrigerate it overnight.

Step 1: Chinese Five Spice Pork Belly

First, the pork belly is cooked whole with some ginger, scallion and garlic to firm up the meat and make it easier to slice.Chinese Five Spice Pork Belly - I make this for special occasions and it always receives rave reviews. Serve with steamed Chinese buns, hoisin sauce and sliced cucumbers for an appetizer ~ https://jeanetteshealthyliving.com

Chinese Five Spice Pork Belly - I make this for special occasions and it always receives rave reviews. Serve with steamed Chinese buns, hoisin sauce and sliced cucumbers for an appetizer ~ https://jeanetteshealthyliving.com

Next, once the pork belly is cool, cut it into thick 1/2″ pieces.

Chinese Five Spice Pork Belly - I make this for special occasions and it always receives rave reviews. Serve with steamed Chinese buns, hoisin sauce and sliced cucumbers for an appetizer ~ https://jeanetteshealthyliving.com

Then, place the pork belly skin side down in a heat-proof dish.

Chinese Five Spice Pork Belly - I make this for special occasions and it always receives rave reviews. Serve with steamed Chinese buns, hoisin sauce and sliced cucumbers for an appetizer ~ https://jeanetteshealthyliving.com

Step 2: Chinese Five Spice Pork Belly

Now, a braising liquid is made by first sautéing scallions, ginger star anise and cinnamon until fragrant.

Chinese Five Spice Pork Belly - I make this for special occasions and it always receives rave reviews. Serve with steamed Chinese buns, hoisin sauce and sliced cucumbers for an appetizer ~ https://jeanetteshealthyliving.comThen, add dark soy sauce, regular soy sauce, rice wine brown sugar and water.

Chinese Five Spice Pork Belly - I make this for special occasions and it always receives rave reviews. Serve with steamed Chinese buns, hoisin sauce and sliced cucumbers for an appetizer ~ https://jeanetteshealthyliving.com

 

Next, pour the braising liquid on top of the sliced pork belly.

Chinese Five Spice Pork Belly - I make this for special occasions and it always receives rave reviews. Serve with steamed Chinese buns, hoisin sauce and sliced cucumbers for an appetizer ~ https://jeanetteshealthyliving.comFinally, cover the dish with a piece of parchment paper and steam gently for 1 1/2 hours.

Chinese Five Spice Pork Belly - I make this for special occasions and it always receives rave reviews. Serve with steamed Chinese buns, hoisin sauce and sliced cucumbers for an appetizer ~ https://jeanetteshealthyliving.com

 

This recipe does take some time to make, but can be made ahead of time. In fact, I prepared this over two days and reheated it on the day of our party. I did the first step of cooking the pork belly in the aromatics one day, then steamed the pork belly in the braising liquid the next day. I then refrigerated the pork belly overnight and scooped off the excess hardened fat the next day.

How To Serve Chinese Five Spice Pork Belly

Serve Chinese Five Spice Pork belly stuffed inside of steamed Chinese buns with thinly sliced cucumbers, hoisin sauce and minced scallions for an appetizer. Two per person is more than enough because pork belly is so rich. – people will be so impressed.

Chinese Five Spice Pork Belly - I make this for special occasions and it always receives rave reviews. Serve with steamed Chinese buns, hoisin sauce and sliced cucumbers for an appetizer ~ https://jeanetteshealthyliving.com

Chinese Five Spice Pork Belly - I make this for special occasions and it always receives rave reviews. Serve with steamed Chinese buns, hoisin sauce and sliced cucumbers for an appetizer ~ https://jeanetteshealthyliving.com

Chinese Five Spice Pork Belly - I make this for special occasions and it always receives rave reviews. Serve with steamed Chinese buns, hoisin sauce and sliced cucumbers for an appetizer
5 from 1 vote
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Chinese Pork Belly

Prep Time 25 minutes
Cook Time 2 hours
Total Time 2 hours 25 minutes
Servings 12
Calories 730 kcal
Author Jeanette

Ingredients

  • 3 pounds pork belly
  • 1 1" slice ginger smashed
  • 4 garlic cloves smashed
  • 5 scallions white parts only

Pork Belly Cooking Sauce

  • 2 teaspoons grapeseed oil
  • 6 slices ginger 1/4" thick
  • 3 garlic cloves smashed
  • 4 scallion cut into 2" lengths, smashed
  • 3 star anise
  • 1 3" piece cinnamon stick broken in half
  • 1/2 cup regular soy sauce
  • 1/4 cup dark soy sauce
  • 1/2 cup Chinese rice wine
  • 1 cup organic brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup water

Instructions

  1. Bring a pot of water to boil and place pork belly inside, along with ginger, garlic and scallion; let cook for 30 minutes until meat is firm.

  2. Remove from pot; let cool; cut into 1/2" slices. Arrange in a heatproof pan, skin side down.
  3. Heat oil until hot; stir fry ginger, garlic, scallions, star anise and cinnamon until fragrant, about a minute. Add soy sauces, rice wine, brown sugar and water. Bring to a boil, then turn off heat and stir until sugar is melted. Pour on top of and in between pork belly slices. Place piece of parchment paper on top to cover the pork belly.

  4. Cover steamer and steam on medium-low for 1 1/2 hours until tender. Refrigerate overnight if possible so you can skim off any excess fat.
  5. Serve with steamed Chinese buns, sliced cucumbers and minced scallions.

Recipe Notes

Chinese pickled sour mustard greens are also a nice accompaniment to pork belly buns. To prepare this, soak pickled sour mustard greens in water for 1/2 hour. Drain and mince. Saute with a little sugar and salt.

Nutrition Facts
Chinese Pork Belly
Amount Per Serving
Calories 730 Calories from Fat 549
% Daily Value*
Fat 61g94%
Saturated Fat 22g138%
Cholesterol 81mg27%
Sodium 860mg37%
Potassium 495mg14%
Carbohydrates 29g10%
Fiber 1g4%
Sugar 19g21%
Protein 13g26%
Vitamin A 100IU2%
Vitamin C 5mg6%
Calcium 44mg4%
Iron 1.5mg8%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

 

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Filed Under: appetizers, Asian, Clean Eating, dairy-free Tagged With: Chinese pork belly, pork belly buns

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Comments

  1. Angie@Angie's Recipes says

    August 22, 2016 at 2:10 pm

    I love pork belly, but it has been ages since I last had one…sighs..all I need is just one! Yours looks really delicious, Jeanette.

    Reply
    • Jeanette says

      August 25, 2016 at 11:21 am

      Pork belly is definitely an indulgent treat – but so good!

      Reply
  2. Amelie Moore says

    August 23, 2016 at 1:53 am

    Oh my gosh this looks so good! I am over here drooling over this dish right now. I am all over this. I can’t even stop starring.

    Reply
    • Jeanette says

      August 25, 2016 at 11:23 am

      Thanks Amelia – it’s a special occasion dish – everyone who’s tried it loves it!

      Reply
  3. Wei says

    September 16, 2017 at 5:07 pm

    Where is the 5 spice in the recipe?

    Reply
    • Jeanette says

      September 16, 2017 at 5:41 pm

      Hi Wei, sorry about the confusion. This recipe actually does not have five spice powder – cinnamon and star anise are the spices used. When I first made this recipe, I did use some five spice powder. The cooking method was slightly different. I rubbed five spice powder and salt on the pork belly and seared it first, then cooked it sous vide.

      Reply
  4. Helen Hiem says

    December 18, 2017 at 5:39 pm

    Hi Jeannette , where can I buy the buns? Can I get it frozen?

    Reply
    • Jeanette says

      December 20, 2017 at 9:13 am

      I buy them in the frozen section of the Asian grocery store.

      Reply
  5. Q&B says

    April 15, 2018 at 11:55 am

    5 stars
    Thanks for the recipe. I’ve made this so many times and this one is a definite keeper. I don’t like the heavy flavor of the five-spice powder, so this is perfect. Thanks for sharing! Love it.

    Reply
    • Jeanette says

      April 15, 2018 at 7:18 pm

      I’m so glad you have been enjoying this recipe – thanks so much for letting me know!

      Reply

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