Here is another familiar comfort food from Shanghai. As far as Shanghainese cuisine is concerned, this dish is as relevant as Hong Shao Rou (Red Cooked Pork) or Shanghai Soup Dumplings.
My grandma used to make this dish with a big spoonful of the good stuff–lard. In those days, pork fat was saved and stored like liquid gold.
Nowadays, lard isn’t much of a pantry staple, but if you want to make this dish the traditional way, I promise not to judge! But this Shanghai classic one-pot meal still stands on its own without the pork fat and is definitely a lot healthier with just a bit of vegetable oil.
Shanghai Cai Fan: Recipe Instructions
Soak the Jasmine or plain long grain rice in 1 1/4 cups water in a clay pot for 45 minutes to an hour.
Once soaked, sprinkle on the salted, cured pork and add a tablespoon of pork lard, bacon grease, or oil.
Put the pot over medium heat, uncovered, and bring it to a boil.
While you wait for rice to boil, heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a wok using medium heat.
Add the minced ginger and caramelize a bit. Then add the bok choy, and stir-fry just until wilted. Turn off the heat.
Once the pot is boiling, cover the pot, turn the heat down to the lowest setting, and let it simmer for 8 minutes.
Now take off the lid and add the cooked bok choy (don’t pour in any of the cooking liquid from the bok choy) to the top of the rice and cover again.
Let it simmer for another 5 minutes. Serve your Shanghai Cai Fan as a one pot meal!
Shanghai Cai Fan (Rice with Salted Pork and Greens)
Ingredients
- 1 cup rice
- 1 1/4 cups water
- 1/4 cup salted cured pork (diced)
- 1 tablespoon pork lard (you can also substitute bacon grease or oil)
- 1 tablespoon oil
- 1/2 teaspoon ginger (minced)
- 1/2 lb baby bok choy (225g, washed and finely chopped)
Instructions
- Soak the rice in 1 1/4 cups water in a clay pot for 45 minutes to an hour. Once soaked, sprinkle on the salted pork and add a tablespoon of grease or oil. Put the pot over medium heat, uncovered, and bring it to a boil.
- While you wait for rice to boil, heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a wok using medium heat. Add the minced ginger and caramelize a bit. Then add the boy choy, and stir-fry just until wilted. Turn off the heat.
- Once the pot is boiling, cover the pot, turn the heat down to the lowest setting, and let it simmer for 8 minutes. Now take off the lid and add the cooked bok choy (don't pour in any of the cooking liquid from the bok choy) to the top of the rice and cover again. Let it simmer for another 5 minutes. Serve!
Hi, I’m new to your blog. I came across it on pinterest. Just wondering from the picture it looks more like chinese sausage 腊肠 than 腊肉. Which is it? Or either one would do?
Thanks
Hi Ima, it is 咸肉 in our pictures. Not 腊肠 or 腊肉. But 腊肠 and 腊肉 both would work for this dish.
I am so excited to try this but I do not have clay pot do you think this will work in a rice cooker?
Hi Ana, this is what I do using a rice cooker: I cook the rice along with diced salted pork. I then stir fry the greens in a wok like I normally do, but finely chop the boy chop. At the end, I add the cooked greens (without any of the liquid) to the cooked rice in the rice cooker, mix everything together and serve right away.
I’ve always enjoyed this dish at restaurants but had no idea it could be made at home, and so easily! Instead of salted pork, I used uncured bacon, cut into bite sized pieces. I lightly sauteed the bacon to render out some of the fat. Then I added the bacon, along with all of the fat in the pan, into the soaked rice. I do not have a clay pot, and just used a regular stainless steel pot. I was worried that the rice might stick to the bottom (since I chose not to use a non-stick pot) so I watched the pot and stirred a couple of times during the cooking. The rice was absolutely delicious.
I’m curious if you (or anyone else) has made this with brown rice, and if so, how to successfully modify the cooking time/methods to account for the substitution.
Love your website.
So glad that this recipe is to your liking. I have not tried it with brown rice, so please let us know the outcome if you decide to cook this recipe with brown rice.
Hello Judy,
What type of rice do you use for this dish?
Hi Evelyn, I used regular jasmine rice.
I want to add is that if you can’t finish the rice, you can turn it into a rice porridge and add a pinch of salt and that is wonderful as well.
Great idea, JT!
Hi JT, We don’t have the leftover problem here. I always polish this dish off! :o
Hey, what kind of salt cured pork did you use?
Hi Larry, I used Chinese ham (火腿）， both Chinese ham and salted pork (咸肉）work well for this dish. Hope you will give it a try. ^o^
I am so excited to find this! My mother is from Shanghai and we used to have this when we were kids. All my five siblings and I loved it. I’m going to make it for my grandkids this week. I want to see if my picky 5 year old grandson who is suspicious of anything veggie will like this.
Hi Sophie, this is such a comfort food for us Shanghainese. Hope your grandson will like it.
I imagine that this is delicious. I love bok choy, but I cannot say I have had salted pork so I will look for that. Definitely saving to make later and thanks for sharing on Merry Monday.
Thank you, Rachel, you can also use pancetta if you can’t find salted pork.
is there a substitute for the clay pot?
Hi, Susie, any pot would work, even a non-stick pot. Let us know how you like it.
This looks so tasty and love the vibrant colour!
Thank you, Millie.