Mei Cai Kou Rou, a dish of braised and then steamed pork belly, holds a high position on the Chinese comfort food list. A dish that makes you miss the motherland if you’re Chinese, a dish that makes you miss your childhood if you’re me, and a dish that makes you miss Yong He Da Wang (a fast food chain in China that does a pretty good job with this steamed pork belly dish) if you’re Kaitlin.
Mei Cai Kou Rou is a dish that looks so labor intensive, you can tell your guests that you slaved over the stove all day. In actuality, the hardest part of this dish is the process of washing the preserved vegetables (it’s really important to wash them thoroughly). This is definitely a specialty of Chinese pork belly recipes because the preserved mustard greens really add a flavor that is unique and very addictive.
To prepare these dried vegetables, you need to soak them for up to 5-6 hours in a large basin, and wash them 6-7 times, until the water is completely clean. These then to be quite sandy, and you don’t want any sand in your final dish! Washing them in a colander under running water won’t be enough. Get the largest bowl or basin you have, and soak/rinse them at least 6 times. It does seem like a lot of work, but it’s really only a few minutes of active prep.
I used to buy the dried mustard greens that came in a box, and they seemed to be better quality than the brands that come in a plastic bag. If you can find that one, get it! Mustard greens can also be salty (different brands have varying levels of saltiness, and much of that salt gets stripped away in the washing process), so make sure to add soy sauce gradually, and taste along the way.
For this steamed pork belly, you’ll need:
- 5-6 oz. dried preserved mustard greens (about 3 cups after soaked and thoroughly washed)
- 1 ½ lbs pork belly
- Water
- 2 slices ginger
- 2 star anise
- 2 tablespoons oil
- 1 teaspoon dark soy sauce, plus 1 tablespoon
- 1 1/2 tablespoons sugar (or rock sugar)
- 1 teaspoon minced ginger
- 2 tablespoons light soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons shaoxing wine
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch
Prepare preserved greens. Soak for 5-6 hours. Then wash them in a large basin of water 6-7 times to get rid of all sand and dirt. Drain and set aside.
Put the pork belly in a pot, and cover with cold water. Add the ginger slices and star anise. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, and cook for 35 minutes. Take the pork out and set aside.
Heat a tablespoon of oil in the wok over medium heat. Brown the pork on the skin side first, and then the other sides.
Once browned, add a teaspoon of dark soy sauce and a tablespoon water, and carefully coat the pork in the liquid. Turn off the heat and let the pork cool in the wok.
Carefully slice the pork into ½-inch pork belly slices and arrange them neatly in the bottom of a shallow heat-proof bowl as you see it in the picture below.
In the wok, add another tablespoon of oil and the sugar. Cook the sugar until it melts and turns a caramel color. Add the minced ginger and cook for 30 seconds. Then add the preserved vegetables, and stir for a couple of minutes.
Add a tablespoon of dark soy sauce, 2 tablespoons light soy sauce, 2 tablespoons shaoxing wine and 1 cup chicken broth. Bring to a boil and then turn off the heat.
Spoon the preserved vegetable mixture over the pork belly slices in the bowl and spread evenly to cover all the pork. Put the bowl in a steamer and steam for 75 minutes. See our post on how to set up a steamer if you’re not familiar with steaming foods in Chinese cooking.
Remove the bowl from the steamer and carefully pour off any excess liquid into your wok (you’ll use this liquid to make the sauce). Bring the liquid to a gentle simmer, and add the cornstarch to thicken it. Cover the bowl of steamed pork belly with your serving plate and flip it over onto the plate.
Pour the sauce over the dish and serve. This steamed pork belly dish is glorious with a bowl of white rice!
Mei Cai Kou Rou (Steamed Pork Belly w/ Preserved Mustard Greens)
Ingredients
- 6 ounces dried preserved mustard greens (about 3 cups after they're soaked and thoroughly washed)
- 1 ½ pounds pork belly
- Water
- 2 slices ginger
- 2 star anise
- 2 tablespoons oil
- 1 teaspoon dark soy sauce (plus 1 tablespoon, divided)
- 1 1/2 tablespoons rock sugar (or granulated sugar)
- 1 teaspoon ginger (minced)
- 2 tablespoons light soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons shaoxing wine
- 1 cup chicken stock
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch
Instructions
- Prepare preserved greens. Soak for 5-6 hours. Then wash them in a large basin of water 6-7 times to get rid of all sand and dirt. Drain and set aside.
- Put the pork belly in a pot, and cover with cold water. Add the ginger slices and star anise. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, and cook for 35 minutes. Take the pork out and set aside.
- Heat a tablespoon of oil in the wok over medium heat. Brown the pork skin side first, followed by the other sides. Once browned, add a teaspoon of dark soy sauce and a tablespoon water, and carefully coat the pork in the liquid. Turn off the heat and let the pork cool in the wok.
- Carefully slice the pork into ½-inch slices, and arrange them neatly in the bottom of a shallow heat-proof bowl. In the wok, add another tablespoon of oil and the sugar. Cook the sugar until it melts and turns a caramel color. Add the minced ginger and cook for 30 seconds. Then add the preserved vegetables, and stir for a couple of minutes. Add a tablespoon of dark soy sauce, 2 tablespoons light soy sauce, 2 tablespoons shaoxing wine and 1 cup chicken broth. Bring to a boil and then turn off the heat.
- Spoon the preserved vegetable mixture over the pork belly in the bowl and spread evenly to cover all the pork. Put the bowl in a steamer and steam for 75 minutes.
- Remove the bowl from the steamer and carefully pour off any excess liquid into your wok (you’ll use this liquid to make the sauce). Bring the liquid to a gentle simmer, and add the cornstarch to thicken it. Cover the bowl of pork with your serving plate and flip it over onto the plate. Pour the sauce over the dish and serve. This dish is glorious with a bowl of white rice!
Nutrition
Dennis says
I’d like to know to get such an intense RED colour for the sauce shown in the pics. None of the ingredients are red.
Sarah says
Hey Dennis, the color comes from dark soy sauce. It gives dishes a rich brown/amber color that does look red in certain light! That is why soy sauce/dark soy sauce braised dishes are called “red cooked” in Chinese.
Dean says
I’ve been looking for a recipe for this for a long time! We had a spectacular version of this dish in Shanghai 10 years ago. I make hong shao rou all the time, so this is a natural next step.
Judy says
Naturally, Dean! Hope you like the recipe ;-)
Jonathan says
Is this the same dish from the opening of Eat Drink Man Woman???
Judy says
Yes, it is :-)
lynn says
Thank you for the recipe! It was easy to follow and the taste is fantastic!
Judy says
I also love this recipe! Thank you for leaving us a lovely comment, Lynn.
Lee says
I made accordingly and it was good.
On the other hand, how do I may let the slab of pork belly softer?
Judy says
Hi Lee, steaming for longer will soften the pork belly even more.
Elle says
If I make this using my Instant Pot, do I just use the steam function for 75 minutes or should I cut the time?
Thanks!!
Judy says
Hi Elle, I just bought my I/P and haven’t had the chance to use it yet, so it’s hard for me to comment. I am so sorry!
Sherman Cheung says
Yummy !!, Another Classic Hakka Dish .
Bill says
Hi Sherman, Yes, and it is so so good!
question says
Quick question, Step 5, do you put all of the liquid over the pork or just the preserved vegatable? I ask because I had a lot liquid and the pork was submerged.
Judy says
It’s ok as long as the liquid does not overflow out of the bowl during steaming. If there is still too much liquid after steaming, pour the liquid into a small pot after steaming, heat it up, add a little cornstarch slurry to thicken, and pour it back on the dish before serving.
Elena says
Hi, I love your recipe. I’ve done it a few times now, although I steam it for 2.5 hours. Just wanted to let you know the printable version of it is missing the shaoxing wine in step 4.
Bill says
Hi Elena, This is one of my favorite pork belly dishes of all time and I do have lots of them! Thanks so much for letting us know about the omission. I corrected the printable recipe card to include the Shaoxing wine now. Thanks to readers and avid home chefs like you, we can keep our recipes and content at the highest quality level for everyone :)
Jenn says
Hello. I just want to thank you for this great recipe & your great website I have stumbled across your website whilst searching for the pork with preserved veg recipes. My parents used to cook this all the time & always thought it is a very difficult dish to replicate. But reading your recipe I wanted to give it a go. I have a pack of the preserved vegetables sitting in my pantry for more than a year so I finally made the dish today. Surprise surprise – it was delish – both hubby & son love it as well.
I boiled the pork in a pressure cooker for about 20 minutes but I think next time it will cook it for 30 mins as we love when the pork just melt in the mouth. The meat was not hard but we just like if softer.
Overall, it was a total success. Also, I added a tbsp of “oyster sauce” to the sauce just before adding the cornstarch. Thanks again guys. Will try the milk bread tomorrow :)
Judy says
Thank you so much, Jenn, for sharing your success! It’s so rewarding to see more and more people are enjoying our recipes.
Jennifer says
Hello Judy –
Any advice for the pork to be melting in the mouth. I saw a few other recipes which require 3hr steam cooking time.
Hope to hear from you soon.
Thanks, Jenn
Judy says
Hi Jennifer, you can definitely adjust the steaming time. Just check it periodically it until it reaches the consistency you like.