Chilly days call for hearty, warming slow cooked meals, and this braised pork recipe is a winner. Simmering away on the stove for 2 hours, it results in a tender and flavoursome braised pork fillet dish that’s deeply aromatic and rich. Â
Ingredients
Method
Place mushrooms in a small bowl, cover with warm water and stand for 30 minutes.
Place pork, sauces, ginger, garlic, lemon grass, lime leaves, sugar, star anise, drained mushrooms and stock in a saucepan just large enough to hold the pork. Bring to the boil, then reduce heat to low and simmer, covered, for 2 hours, turning occasionally (as liquid won’t cover pork completely).
Cook noodles in a large saucepan of simmering water for 2 minutes; drain.
Slice pork. Serve on a bed of noodles, drizzled with some of the cooking liquid, topped with mushrooms and coriander.
Serve with…
Steamed Asian greens, such as pak choy, choy sum or gai lan.
Key ingredients in this braised pork recipe
- Pork neck: Also called pork scotch fillet or pork fillet; a boneless cut from the foreloin.
- Shiitake mushrooms: Large, meaty and, although cultivated, have the earthiness and taste of wild mushrooms. Rehydrate dried shiitake mushrooms before use.
- Makrut lime leaves: Sold fresh, dried or frozen. It looks like two glossy dark green leaves joined end to end, forming a rounded hourglass shape. If you can’t find makrut lime leaves, subtitute it with a strip of fresh lime peel.
- Lemon grass: A tall, clumping, lemon smelling and tasting, sharp-edged aromatic tropical grass. The white lower part of the stem is used, finely chopped, in many South-East Asian dishes. Fresh lemon grass can be found in supermarkets, greengrocers and Asian food shops.
- Star anise: A dried star-shaped pod with an astringent aniseed flavour. Use it to flavour stocks and marinades, and is available whole and ground.
- Dark soy sauce: Deep brown, almost black in colour. It’s rich, with a thicker consistency than other types, and pungent but not particularly salty. Dark soy is good for marinating.
- Light soy sauce: Fairly thin in consistency and, while paler than the others, the saltiest tasting. Light soy is used in dishes in which the natural colour of the ingredients is to be maintained. Not to be confused with salt-reduced or low-sodium varieties.
- Fresh rice noodles: Chewy and pure white, they do not need pre-cooking before use.
Can you freeze braised pork?
This slow cooked braised pork recipe freezes beautifully, giving you a wonderful comforting meal at the ready. Freeze slices of pork at the end of step 4, with the cooking liquid and mushrooms. Just reheat and serve with fresh rice noodles and coriander.
Did you know?
Slow cooking can be done in an electric slow cooker, on the stove or in the oven. All with the same delicious result. Whichever method you use, long, slow cooking will tenderise even the toughest cut of meat.
