Taiwanese Lu Rou Fan

Updated at: Thu, 17 Aug 2023 06:37:29 GMT

Step 1

Finely dice tofu, daikon, and mushrooms.

Step 2

Mince and fry shallots if not using prefried shallots (much easier).

Step 3

Cut pork belly into thin, small pieces.

Step 4

Heat up a big wok or dutch oven and add a tbsp of neutral oil, just to coat the bottom of the pan so that it becomes non-stick (as it heats up). Can wipe off excess with a paper towel since pork belly will add a lot of fat.

Step 5

Once pan is hot, add pork belly and cook on medium high. Do not stir for a few minutes at the beginning, let the meat naturally release from the bottom of the surface. If there is excess liquid from the meat, soak and remove with a clean paper towel. When it's drier, the fat from the pork belly will have better maillard browning. Stir sparingly, with 30-60s between stirs to allow for browning.

Step 6

After pork belly is nicely browned (I usually get impatient when half looks caramelized), add shaoxing cooking wine. This will bring down the smell of the pork and make it more pleasant. Then add tofu, daikon, and mushrooms. Mix well.

Step 7

Add soy sauces, rock sugar, and 2 cups of water or enough to just cover the ingredients. Then add dried shallots.

Step 8

Nestle in 4-6 packets of taiwanese spice seasoning. Add a tbsp of five spice if the packets don't already contain it.

Step 9

Simmer on low for at least 1 hour. I don't really measure the time, but check periodically (every 15-20 minutes) if the sauce has thickened. Since the only thickening agents here are pork belly fat and sugar, it will not be super thick when hot, but it will be noticeably thicker than it was initially.

Step 10

Finally, season to taste. It should be salty enough at this point, but feel free to add a tsp of salt to round out out the flavor if it's not too salty (re: SFAH's tips on layering salt). I also like to add a tsp of msg.

Step 11

Turn off the heat, but leave it to come to room temp on the stove. At this point, you can nestle in the peeled soft-boiled eggs. Some traditional recipes serve this with hard boiled eggs that you can put in before it's done, but since I like soft boiled, I usually eat the eggs with this dish the next day so it can absorb the flavors better. I also like to leave everything in the same pot if I'm using the dutch oven, but if you move it to separate containers, feel free to remove the spice packets. They won't really do anything in the fridge anymore.

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