Slow-cooked Sticky Pork Belly

This decadent sticky pork dish tastes INCREDIBLE! It makes you feel like you’re eating at a fancy restaurant, but you’re actually at home in slippers and track pants. The prep is done in 15 minutes and the end result is sticky, sweet, fork-tender pork flavoured with garlic, ginger, soy sauce, Chinese five-spice and star anise.

Ingredients

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 kg pork belly, cut into 2–3 cm cubes
• 1 whole garlic bulb, peeled and roughly chopped
• 3 red onions, diced roughly (brown onions are fine too)
• 1 thumb-sized knob of ginger, sliced and cut into thin matchsticks
• 115 g brown sugar
• 125 ml tamari or all-purpose soy sauce (use tamari for gluten-free)
• 1 tsp Chinese five-spice
• 2 star anise
• 500 ml water

To Serve

• Sliced long red chilli (optional)
• Steamed rice and greens

Method

1. Heat the olive oil in a large, heavy-based frying pan over medium–high heat and cook the pork belly in batches for 5–8 minutes until browned and golden. Set aside.
2. Add the garlic, onion and ginger to the same pan. Cook for 2–3 minutes until slightly softened and fragrant.
3. Add the brown sugar, tamari (or all-purpose soy sauce), Chinese five-spice, star anise and water. Return the pork to the pan.
4. Bring to a gentle simmer. Once simmering, reduce the heat to the lowest setting, place the lid on and cook for 2 hours. Check halfway through and add ½ cup of water if the sauce is sticking.
5. Once cooked, the pork should easily break apart with a fork. If not, cook in 15-minute intervals until soft.
6. Once the pork is soft, remove the lid and turn the heat to high for 5–10 minutes to let the sauce thicken. It is ready when the sauce is sticky and coats the pork.
7. Garnish with the sliced chilli and serve with steamed rice and greens.

Tips

• Don’t worry about cutting the ingredients too finely; they will break down in the delicious, sticky sauce.
• For slow-cooker: Brown pork, then cook on low for 6–7 hours with only 1 cup water. Thicken sauce on stovetop afterwards.
• For pressure cooker: Sear pork, cook on high pressure for 30 minutes, natural release 10 minutes, then reduce sauce on sauté mode.
• The final reduction step is essential – no reduction = pork stew, not sticky pork belly.