TASTEMADE “Thit Heo Kho”-Caramelized Braised Pork With Eggs Braised
A TASTEMADE COLLABORATION/PARTNERSHIP
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As a kid my parents would slap my hands for eating too much of the juicy braised pork belly fat and skin but I still turned out ok. LOL
Today, celebrate Lunar New Year and eat something that really makes you happy!
Vietnamese Caramelized Pork Belly aka "Thit Heo Kho" is one of the most popular Vietnamese dishes to ring in the New Year but it's also one of our family favorites as well. At 83 years old, my dad still watches and teaches me how to cook all my treasured childhood dishes. The glossy and tender, melt in your mouth braised pork belly is cooked in a savory and dark coconut broth. It's an ultimate comfort food that brings me back to my childhood.
Watch my FULL episode making this dish with my dad, click -here-.
*TIPS
-Caramelizing the pork skin in the caramel sauce will render the pork belly skin a beautiful dark brown/orange color!
-Coconut soda: This is the secret ingredient, there’s no real substitution for this so try to find this can before making this dish
-Maggi/oyster sauce marinade will help add a nice umami and darker color to the pork
INGREDIENTS
2.5-3 lbs of Pork belly
PORK RINSE
1 tsp salt
2 tbs vinegar
PARBOIL
Pot of cold water (about 8-12 cups water)
1 tbs salt
3 smashed garlic
2 shallots cut in quarters
Juice of 1 lime
MARINADE INGREDIENTS
1 cup Maggi seasoning
1/4 cup oyster sauce
1 1/2 tsp fresh cracked black pepper
CARAMEL
3 tbs brown sugar
4 garlic cloves smashed & loosely sliced
2 small/medium shallots & loosely sliced
1 tbsp light extra virgin olive oil
BRAISING INGREDIENTS
1 tsp black pepper to taste
1 can coco Rico (lighter coconut taste)
9-12 hard boiled eggs, peeled
1 tsp fish sauce
3 tbs light soy sauce
2-3 dried red peppers
1 Knob of ginger (thinly sliced, optional)
GARNISH INGREDIENTS
Scallions
Cilantro
Thai red chili peppers
PREPARATION
1. Eggs: Boil eggs or whatever you think will fit into your pot (a nice 7 minute boiled egg is perfect so it won't over cook with the pork). Put eggs in an ice bath and peel and rinse under warm water to remove any shell pieces and set aside.
2. Rinse pork under cold water
3. Rinse/scrub pork skin in a large bowl with salt and vinegar and some water in a bowl. Then rinse under cold water.
4. Scrape pork belly with knife to remove any dirt/impurities
5. Rinse under cold water
6. Pat dry pork with paper towels
7. Cut your pork belly into about 2x2" pieces.
8. Parboil pork to get a cleaner looking stew by bringing a large pot of water on the stove to a boil. Add garlic, shallot onions, and lime juice and the pork to the boiling water and parboil for about 2-3 minutes (at this point you should see a bunch of gritty bubbles to the top, the meat should be a little gray). Dump/and discard the boiled water & onions/garlic.
9. Remove from heat. Drain & rinse pork belly.
10. Marinade pork with Maggi, black pepper and oyster sauce for 30-60 min (overnight in fridge is best).
11. In a large saucepan, heat brown sugar in dry pan until caramelized. Swirl and mix the mixture until sugar has melted and turned a light caramel color (This should take between 1.5-3 min but be careful not to BURN the sugar, lower heat to low or remove from heat if the caramel starts to really smoke)
(If your caramel burns or you smell a really burnt sugar smell, start over and do not use the burnt caramel) then add ginger (and ginger if you opt to use ginger).
Then add 1 tbs oil and pork and cook for 2-3 minutes on medium/high heat.
12. Add chopped shallots and ginger, cook until fragrant over medium heat, then add all pork belly pieces into pan skin side down and cook 3-4 minutes (medium/high heat) until skin has turned a dark caramel'y/orange/brown color, then flip to bottom and cook 3-4 min until bottoms are browned (be sure to swirl pork in marinade to distribute the brown sauce), then cook sides until they are brown as well.
13. After all sides are browned, fling pork pieces loose of all garlic / onions and place into a clean bowl. Then strain marinade through a strainer to keep garlic and shallots out. (You can also leave these in but it just makes for better presentation without all the little onion and garlic bits).
14. Heat a medium pot and set heat to medium, add all contents of pork & marinade and add 1 can of coco rico, and a little water if needed to cover about half of the pork and add soy sauce.
15. Peel eggs carefully under running cool water.
16. Bring to boil with lid off and then turn down stove to low/med setting for a nice simmer, add eggs (keeping lid off for about an hour and a half, stir pot every 15-20 min and remove any impurities off top, you can also remove the translucent flat layer off the top as well (just leave a little of the fat for flavor)).
17. After 1.5-2 hours the pork belly should be tender, pork belly skin should also be very soft and tender (not chewy and I like it when it basically melts in your mouth) and the eggs should turn in color. Add fish sauce and black pepper to taste. If it hasn't reached this tender point yet, keep pot on low simmer until you have a tender/soft pork belly and skin.
18. Scoop off any excess pork fat on top of the stew (its a layer of very clear water on top of the darker brown stew water below).
19. Garnish with black pepper, green onions and cilantro.