Twice-cooked Pork is pork belly, first boiled then fried with a fragrant chorus of peppers and bean pastes. The green chili pepper used during my recipe lesson was about four inches, thin, curled, wrinkly skin, and spicy. Green bell pepper will suffice unless you like it spicy or have this pepper available. The red chili pepper need not be too spicy and should have a sweeter flavor.

This version of Twice-cooked Pork may differ from other Twice-cooked Pork recipes. This is the version I learned from the Chén family, in Suíjiāng 绥江, Yúnnán province.

Some of the essential ingredients for Liú Ayi's Twice Cooked Pork (回锅肉, Huí Guō Ròu)

Ingredients

• 1 pound pork belly, keep the skin layer
• 5 green chili peppers or 1 green bell pepper, sliced
• 3 red chili peppers or 2 red bell peppers, sliced
• 3 young leeks, green and white part, cut into 1″ diagonal pieces
• 1 tablespoon Dòubàn Jiàng (豆瓣酱, chili bean paste/sauce) – buy online
• 1 (1-inch) piece fresh ginger, finely chopped
• 2 tablespoons peanut oil
• 1 teaspoon Huáng Jiǔ (黄酒, yellow rice wine) – buy online
• 1 teaspoon soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon white sugar
• salt

Directions

1. Bring a large pot of water to boil. Add the pork belly and return to a boil, then simmer for 20 minutes. Remove the pork from the water and allow to cool. Keep the pork in the refrigerator for 2-3 hours; this will make the meat firm and easy to slice thinly without the skin and fat separating from the lean.
2. Slice the cold pork belly thinly, as thin as a slice of bacon. Each piece should 1 inch x 2 inches.
3. Heat a seasoned wok and add peanut oil. Add the pork belly slices and stir-fry until the edges are slightly crisped and the the fat has melted a little. Move the pork to the side of the wok.
4. In the clear space of the wok, add the chili bean paste and stir fry it for 15 seconds. Add the green and red peppers, ginger, and leeks and stir-fry with the pork slices. Add the rice wine, soy sauce, white sugar, and a dash of salt (to taste). Serve immediately.

Note: I use brown sugar over white sugar. If Huáng Jiǔ (黄酒, yellow rice wine) isn’t available, use dry sherry. Don’t use Japanese rice wine as it is sweeter than Chinese rice wines.

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