Fork Over Your Belly!!!

As usual I was missing dishes I had at home (or anywhere where authentic Chinese/Taiwanese restaurant are found). Especially this nice pork dish with all the lovely fat, skin and tender meat all in one bite. In Chinese sometimes it is called Tong-po ro. Tong-po is the name of a famous poet/calligrapher who loved the dish and might have even came up with it. (ro just means meat for those who are curious.)

When you cook it just right the whole chunk of pork melts in your mouth. I personally love the thick skin bit and the perfect combination of skin, fat and meat. Us Chinese/Taiwanese love it so much there's even a rock that has the shape and colour of this perfect meat on show at the National Palace museum in Taiwan. It's one of the most famous article along with the jade cabbage. You can even get postcards, chopsticks, key chains, ear rings with the little piece of meat on the end at the museum gift shop. Needless to say that is my favorite piece of art in the entire museum. Go figure.

The following is how you make an edible version :D

Braised Pork Belly

Ingredients:

Pork belly 500g

3-4 cloves Garlic use whole

*Optional:

• 1 Onion cut into large chunks

• 1 Carrots cut into cubes

• 2 Spring onions cut into 1 inch

• 1 small piece Ginger sliced

Soy sauce (other recipe I saw said half cup, I just free poured. Though be careful don't pour too much or else it will be too salty.)

Sugar (white or brown or whichever) 2 table spoon

Chinese Five spice 1 table spoon, more if you like the flavor to be stronger

Water

**I would highly suggest you cook some rice so you have something to eat the pork belly with. Follow the instruction for rice cooking on the package. If you're lucky or Asian you'll have a rice cooker then you don't have to worry about watching the rice while cooking the pork belly. I'm personally really sh*t at cooking rice on the stove.

How to make yummy pork for your tummy:

1. Cut pork belly into 1/2 inch slices that has both fat and meat.

Don't cut it too small because it will shrink in the cooking process. Make sure there’s no hair on the skin, and then wash it in cold water.

2. Boiled a pot of water, then put the meat in to boil. Skim the yucky blood off that comes to the surface. Drain the meat out soon as it turns whitish (see picture) and keep it on the side ready to use.

(This step along with adding cooking/rice wine helps get rid off the "meat stench". Though I made it without adding cooking/rice wine and personally I can't taste the difference.)

3. Heat oil in a pot. Once oil is hot, add sugar (*ginger slices if you like or if you have some handy) and stir around until the sugar caramelizes aka turns brown. Do not be afraid if it starts smoking at this point. (It should have a nice sweet smell like roast chestnut :D ) Now put the boiled meat in and fry in high heat for about 3 min or until all cubes are covered with the caramelized sugar. This is how you get the nice brown colour on the meat. (If you had rice wine now is the time to add it. Add about a table spoon and keep stirring.)

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4. Now throw in cloves of garlic then pour soy sauce and add water until it covers the meat. Keep the heat on high until water boils. Keep boiling for about 10 minutes.

5. Cover and turn the heat down to low for about an hour to reduce the sauce. Depends on how much time you have, sometimes I leave it for an hour and a half even two hours. Remember to stir every 15 min or so just to make sure the meat doesn't stick to the bottom.

*3o min before it is done you can add the optional onion, carrots, and spring onions. You can even add boiled eggs. If you do make sure you peel off the egg shell and keep turning the eggs so they have a consistent colour throughout. If you want the veggies well cooked/softer then just put them in earlier. Easy peasy.

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Time to Serve

First dish up a bowl of rice, or on a plate if you're a NAsian = NonAsian. Then take a big ladle and scoop out some meat + whatever else you put in it and some sauce and pour it on top of the rice.

Now dig in, chopsticks, forks or spoons!!

p.s. I know it took a long time but I'm definitely sure it is worth it. If not then please send it to me I will eat it all.

Ring ring ring ring ring ring ring...

What's up peeps? I hope you guys are all having a good dream. Not sure why I am posting at almost 3 in the morning cause I really want to sleep. Being awake at this time makes me wanna eat... Food.............

What was I talking about... That's right. Phone! So my friend Henry who had to replace his phone multiple times for multiple reasons in the last 5 years. Yesterday in the middle of our ceramic class he informed me that he sat on his phone and cracked the top of the LCD screen. Now he can't see shite. No text messaging for Henry.

Knowing how horrible it is to not have a working phone in this damn age I proceed to look for a phone for Henry the Cellbreaker. After crawling on clay covered floor and stopped to refuel on some fresh off the grill carne asada tacos I finally came across some exciting new models that I think my dear friend would like.


Not only do the buttons feels great they also has great reception. The sound quality is exceptional. They also have the new iBanana. The screen on that thing is huge! In the end Henry choose a pretty simple model. Here's the rest of his option. Anyone need a new phone?


L-R Choconana, Motonana, Nokiana, iBanana

--------EDIT-------------------------------------------------------------
Update on Mr. Henry's new banana phone. Sadly in an unpredictable turn of events once Henry will once again be needing another phone. It all happened when Henry left the phone at his girlfriend Bianca's place. Not so long after Henry receive the news from Bianca that his phone is no longer on this planet except in spirit. Rest in peace dear phone o' Henry.

*Text from Bianca to Henry*


*Bicol is a dialect of a region in the Philippines"

This event just proves to me that Asians DO eat everything and anything. Even a telephone cannot escape the wrath of food-loving Asians. Be scared phones and pagers. Be very very scared. For us Asians are everywhere. We are your worst nightmare and we WILL eat you.

--Tinah--