Mui Choy Kau Yuk

Ingredients

• 800g skin-on pork belly, in one piece
• 150g dried sweet mui choy (preserved mustard greens)
• 3 tbsp dark soy sauce
• 2 tbsp light soy sauce
• 2 tbsp Shaoxing wine
• 1.5 tbsp rock sugar
• 1 tbsp minced ginger
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tsp five spice powder
• 250ml chicken stock
• 3 tbsp neutral oil
• 2 slices ginger, for boiling
• 2 star anise
• 1 tsp cornflour mixed with 1 tbsp water

Before you cook

• Soak the mui choy in plenty of cold water for 5 hours, changing the water twice.
• Wash the soaked greens in a basin six or seven times, until no grit settles at the bottom.
• Squeeze the greens dry and chop them into 1cm pieces.
• Mince the ginger and garlic.

Steps

1. Put the pork belly in a pot with the ginger slices and star anise and cover it with water.
2. Bring to the boil, then simmer for 35 minutes, until a skewer meets no resistance.
3. Lift the belly out and pat it completely dry.
4. Prick the skin all over with a skewer or the tip of a knife.
5. Rub 1 tablespoon of the dark soy sauce over the skin and let it dry for 10 minutes.
6. Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a heavy pan and lay the belly in skin side down, standing back from the spitting.
7. Fry for 5 minutes behind a splatter screen, until the skin is blistered and mahogany.
8. Lift the pork out and let it cool for 15 minutes.
9. Cut the belly into slices about 1cm thick, cutting through skin and fat together.
10. Arrange the slices skin side down in a deep heatproof bowl, overlapping them like roof tiles.
11. Heat the last tablespoon of oil in a wok and melt the rock sugar in it until amber.
12. Add the minced ginger and garlic and stir for 30 seconds.
13. Tip in the chopped mui choy and stir-fry for 3 minutes, until it smells sweet and toasty.
14. Add the light soy, remaining dark soy, Shaoxing wine, five spice and stock, and simmer for 2 minutes.
15. Pack the greens and their liquid over the pork, pressing down firmly.
16. Steam the bowl over simmering water for 90 minutes, topping up the water twice.
17. Pour the liquid from the bowl into a small pan and thicken it with the cornflour slurry.
18. Set a serving plate over the bowl and invert the whole thing in one confident movement.
19. Pour the thickened sauce over the dome and serve with plenty of rice.