Rice & Fried Rice · Taiwanese home cooking
Taiwanese Braised Pork Rice with Fried Shallots
Pork belly is braised with soy, sugar and five spice until the fat turns translucent, then spooned over rice with crisp fried shallots that shatter against the soft, glossy sauce.
About this dish
Frying shallots sets the rhythm. Sliced paper-thin into warm oil, they hiss, curl, and move from pale gold to amber in the last thirty seconds, so you stand over the pan with a sieve and pull them the moment the sizzling quietens. The braise is slower and quieter: pork belly, soy and a little rock sugar simmer until the fat turns translucent and the sauce dark and sticky. Over plain rice, with a halved egg and a handful of shallots, the bowl reads salty, sweet and faintly spiced.
Before you start
Equipment: Pot, Skillet, Rice cooker. Tap the ingredient checkboxes as you go.
Method
6 steps · tick each one off as you finish it.
Cook the rice
Rinse 320 g rice for 30 seconds, drain, and repeat twice until the water runs clear. Add 420 ml water to a rice cooker and steam 20 minutes on medium heat, then rest 10 minutes off the heat until the hissing stops.
Prepare the soy eggs
Lower 220 g eggs into boiling water over high heat and cook 7 minutes until the whites set firm. Cool in cold water for 3 minutes off the heat, peel, and soak in 1 tbsp soy sauce for 10 minutes until stained tan.
Fry the shallots
Heat 200 ml oil in a skillet over medium heat for 3 minutes until a shallot slice sizzles gently. Add 150 g shallots and fry 6 minutes over medium heat, stirring, until they turn amber and the hissing drops to a quiet whisper.
Brown the pork
Lift the shallots out with a sieve and drain 2 minutes off the heat until they crisp; reserve 2 tbsp of the oil. Brown 500 g pork in a pot over high heat for 5 minutes in that oil until the edges caramelise.
Braise the sauce
Add 3 tbsp light soy sauce, 1 tbsp dark soy sauce, 1 tbsp rock sugar, 1/2 tsp five spice and 400 ml water. Bring to a boil over high heat, then drop to low heat and simmer 60 minutes until the fat turns translucent.
Assemble the bowls
Uncover and simmer 10 minutes over medium heat until the sauce coats a spoon and looks dark and glossy. Spoon over the rice, halve the eggs, and finish with 60 g scallions, 1 tsp sesame oil and the crisp shallots off the heat.
Tips that matter
- Slice the shallots as thinly as you can and dry them well; wet slices sputter and never reach the even amber that makes them crisp.
- Save the shallot oil and use 1 tbsp in the braise; it carries a roasted sweetness that plain oil cannot give.
Easy variations
- Add 100 g rehydrated dried shiitake to the braise for a deeper, woodier sauce.
- Replace the pork belly with 500 g diced pork shoulder and simmer 20 minutes longer.
Questions that come up
Why are my fried shallots bitter?
They went past amber into brown, or the oil was too hot. Start them in warm rather than smoking oil over medium heat and pull them the moment the sizzling quietens.
Can I freeze the braise?
Yes, for up to 2 months without the shallots or eggs. Thaw overnight and reheat over low heat for 10 minutes, adding 60 ml water if the sauce has tightened.
Nutrition, roughly
| Energy | 690 kcal |
|---|---|
| Protein | 28 g |
| Carbohydrate | 68 g |
| Fat | 34 g |
Estimated per serving from standard ingredients, rounded. Treat it as a guide, not clinical data.
Rice, Water and Heat: A Ratio Field Guide
Why one cup of rice does not always want one cup of water, and how to tell a cooked pot from a steamed one before you lift the lid.
