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Preparation
20 minutes
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Cooking
45 minutes
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Difficulty
Easy
Five-spice braised meat is a dish commonly found in Vietnamese family meals during the Lunar New Year. Not only that, you can still cook this dish to treat your friends and family every day because of its deliciousness with just 3 very easy steps. Let’s get into the kitchen and make this simple yet incredibly appealing braised dish right away!
Ingredients for Five-Spice Braised Meat Serves 5
Pork belly 1.5 kg Garlic 5 cloves Five-spice powder 1 teaspoon Coconut water 500 ml Star anise 5 pieces Soy sauce 3 tablespoons Common seasoning a little (salt/ MSG/ sugar/ pepper)
How to choose fresh ingredients
How to choose fresh pork belly
- Fresh pork belly will have a bright pink or light red color and the layer of fat should be white and firm, not mushy.
- Fresh pork belly is usually firm, with the fat and meat sticking tightly together when held. You should choose pieces of meat with a not too thick layer of fat to avoid being too greasy.
- Avoid buying pork belly that is mushy, has a sour smell, or leaves a dent when pressed.
How to choose and where to buy five-spice powder
- Five-spice powder combines all the flavors: sour, spicy, salty, sweet, and bitter. It is a special spice that enhances the taste and flavor of many dishes in various major culinary traditions around the world, especially in Asian cuisine. To avoid buying fake or low-quality five-spice powder, buyers should choose reputable brands with clear origin, labeling, and expiration dates.
- You can buy it at markets, supermarkets, spice shops, or TasteVN supermarket systems nationwide to find quality five-spice powder. Additionally, you can choose to buy online simply and quickly at bachhoaxanh.com!
How to prepare Five-spice Braised Pork
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Prepare the pork
Clean the pork, rub salt around the meat, then rinse it with clean water and use a knife to cut it into bite-sized pieces about 1.5 finger widths wide, then neatly arrange it in a bowl.
Effective ways to remove the smell of pork
- To remove the smell of pork, you can put the cleaned pork into a pot, pour in enough water to cover the meat, bring to a boil for about 2 – 3 minutes, then remove and rinse with clean water.
- Another way is to soak the cleaned pork in saltwater for 20 – 30 minutes, adding a few smashed ginger slices or a little white wine to enhance the smell removal process.
- Drop some ingredients that help eliminate odor such as vinegar/white wine/ginger/lemon grass,… into the boiling water for 2 – 3 minutes while blanching the meat to remove the smell, as well as to keep the meat fresh and delicious.
See details: Effective ways to remove the smell of pork
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Marinate the meat
Peel and finely crush 5 cloves of garlic, then put them in a bag or bowl. Add 1 teaspoon of five-spice powder, 3 tablespoons of soy sauce, 3 tablespoons of white sugar (or yellow sugar), a little ground pepper and mix the spices well.
Star anise is placed on the pieces of meat, not added to the bag or bowl containing the spices. Put the spice bowl into the meat bowl, then turn the meat over so that the spices absorb better.
Wrap the bowl with plastic wrap and let it sit for 30 minutes – 1 hour.
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Braised meat
Place a deep non-stick pan on the stove, wait for the pan to heat up, then add the meat and pour the remaining spices from the bowl into the pan. Note that since the pork belly already contains fat, we do not need to add cooking oil to the pan.
Set the heat to medium, press all 6 sides of each piece of meat against the pan to absorb the spices. Stir the meat until the liquid in the pan is almost evaporated, then pour in 500ml of coconut water.
Cover the lid and cook for 20 minutes. Every 10 minutes, turn the meat over to ensure it cooks evenly. After 20 minutes, remove the lid and continue cooking, turning the meat every 10 minutes until the coconut water in the pan is nearly gone.
Next, continuously stir the meat to achieve a beautiful and even color. When the meat turns a brown color, turn off the heat.
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Final Product
Sliced pork belly, tender and sweet, pairs perfectly with hot rice and crispy pickled vegetables. This promises to be a dish that will make you crave more rice during your family meals.
Additionally, enjoying the meat with fresh vegetables and rice paper, dipped in a bit of fish sauce will also be an incredibly appealing flavor combination if you want to change things up instead of having this dish with rice.
See more
I hope that with the recipe for five-spice braised pork, using tender and sweet pork belly as the main ingredient, that TasteVN shares with you will add flavor to your family meals. Get into the kitchen and make this simple yet delicious dish right away!
