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Sous Vide Sichuan Twice-Cooked Pork Belly

By Tim Chin

Published on January 19, 2021

Time

Sous vide: 8 to 9 hours; active cooking time: 1 hour 15 minutes

Yield

Serves 4

Sous Vide Temperature

170°F/77°C

Sous Vide Sichuan Twice-Cooked Pork Belly

Ingredients

1 1½-pound skinless center-cut fresh pork belly, about 1½ inches thick¼ cup Asian broad bean chili paste 1 teaspoon vegetable oil 2 Cubanelle peppers, stemmed, seeded, and cut into 1-inch pieces2 garlic cloves, minced1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger 10 bird chile, finely ground (1 tablespoon)¼ cup Shaoxing Chinese rice wine or dry sherry ¼ cup water 2 tablespoons hoisin sauce 2 teaspoons fermented black beans, chopped coarse8 scallions, white parts sliced thin, green parts cut into 1-inch pieces

Before You Begin

Be sure to ask for a flat, rectangular center-cut section of skinless pork belly that's 1½ inches thick with roughly equal amounts of meat and fat. If you can only find skin-on pork belly, prepare it as directed, then cut off skin before slicing in step 3. Asian broad bean chili paste (or sauce) is also known as doubanjiang or toban djan; our favorite, Pixian, is available online. Lee Kum Kee Chili Bean Sauce is a good supermarket option. Bird chiles are dried red Thai chiles. You can substitute green bell peppers for cubanelle peppers, if desired. The pork belly has a tendency to splatter during searing in step 4; use a splatter guard to minimize oil splattering. Be sure to double bag the pork to protect against seam failure. For more about sous vide cooking, refer to our sous vide guide.

Instructions

  1.  Using sous vide circulator, bring water to 170°F/77°C in 7-quart container.
  2.  Rub pork with 1 tablespoon chili paste and place in 1-gallon zipper-lock freezer bag. Seal bag, pressing out as much air as possible. Place bag in second 1-gallon zipper-lock freezer bag and seal bag. Gently lower bag into prepared water bath until pork is fully submerged, and then clip top corner of bag to side of water bath container, allowing remaining air bubbles to rise to top of bag. Reopen 1 corner of zipper, release remaining air bubbles, and reseal bag. Cover and cook for at least 8 hours or up to 9 hours.
  3.  Fill large bowl halfway with ice and water. Submerge zipper-lock bag in ice bath and let sit until pork is chilled, about 15 minutes. Transfer pork to cutting board and pat dry with paper towels. Transfer congealed cooking liquid to small bowl. Slice pork lengthwise into 2-inch-wide strips, and then slice strips crosswise into ¼-inch-thick pieces.
  4.  Heat oil in 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add half of pork in even layer and cook until browned, 2 to 3 minutes per side; transfer to bowl. Repeat with remaining pork. Pour off all but 2 tablespoons fat from skillet.
  5.  Add peppers to fat left in skillet and cook over medium-high, without stirring, until lightly charred, about 3 minutes. Stir in garlic, ginger, and bird chile and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in rice wine and water, scraping up any browned bits, and cook until liquid is reduced by half, about 15 seconds.
  6.  Stir in remaining 3 tablespoons chili paste, reserved cooking liquid, hoisin, and fermented black beans. Add pork and scallion greens and toss to coat. Transfer to serving dish and sprinkle with scallion whites.To Make Ahead Pork belly can be rapidly chilled in ice bath and then refrigerated in zipper-lock bag after step 2 for up to 3 days. To reheat, return sealed bag to water bath set to 170°F/77°C for 30 minutes and then proceed with step 3.
Sous Vide Sichuan Twice-Cooked Pork Belly
Photography by Carl Tremblay. Styling by Sally Staub.

Sous Vide Sichuan Twice-Cooked Pork Belly

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By Tim Chin
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Time

Sous vide: 8 to 9 hours; active cooking time: 1 hour 15 minutes

Yield

Serves 4

Sous Vide Temperature

170°F/77°C

Ingredients

1 1½-pound skinless center-cut fresh pork belly, about 1½ inches thick
¼ cup Asian broad bean chili paste
1 teaspoon vegetable oil
2 Cubanelle peppers, stemmed, seeded, and cut into 1-inch pieces
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger
10 bird chile, finely ground (1 tablespoon)
¼ cup Shaoxing Chinese rice wine or dry sherry
¼ cup water
2 tablespoons hoisin sauce
2 teaspoons fermented black beans, chopped coarse
8 scallions, white parts sliced thin, green parts cut into 1-inch pieces

Ingredients

1 1½-pound skinless center-cut fresh pork belly, about 1½ inches thick
¼ cup Asian broad bean chili paste
1 teaspoon vegetable oil
2 Cubanelle peppers, stemmed, seeded, and cut into 1-inch pieces
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger
10 bird chile, finely ground (1 tablespoon)
¼ cup Shaoxing Chinese rice wine or dry sherry
¼ cup water
2 tablespoons hoisin sauce
2 teaspoons fermented black beans, chopped coarse
8 scallions, white parts sliced thin, green parts cut into 1-inch pieces

Ingredients

1 1½-pound skinless center-cut fresh pork belly, about 1½ inches thick
¼ cup Asian broad bean chili paste
1 teaspoon vegetable oil
2 Cubanelle peppers, stemmed, seeded, and cut into 1-inch pieces
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger
10 bird chile, finely ground (1 tablespoon)
¼ cup Shaoxing Chinese rice wine or dry sherry
¼ cup water
2 tablespoons hoisin sauce
2 teaspoons fermented black beans, chopped coarse
8 scallions, white parts sliced thin, green parts cut into 1-inch pieces

Why This Recipe Works

A Chinese dish from the Sichuan province, twice-cooked pork belly traditionally starts by first simmering a pork belly in water until it is just cooked through. Then it is chilled to firm it up, sliced into thin pieces, and finally crisped in a hot wok with vegetables and a fiery sauce. For our recipe, we substitute a sous vide method for the initial simmer. By cooking the belly sous vide, we don't leave flavor behind in a pot of water. In fact, we boosted flavor by cooking the belly with a little Asian broad bean chili paste, and then used the accumulated porky cooking juices in the sauce. The final dish is deeply satisfying—savory and spicy with pork belly that is tender, chewy, and crisp all at once. If you love bacon, then you need sous vide pork belly in your life.

Before You Begin

Be sure to ask for a flat, rectangular center-cut section of skinless pork belly that's 1½ inches thick with roughly equal amounts of meat and fat. If you can only find skin-on pork belly, prepare it as directed, then cut off skin before slicing in step 3. Asian broad bean chili paste (or sauce) is also known as doubanjiang or toban djan; our favorite, Pixian, is available online. Lee Kum Kee Chili Bean Sauce is a good supermarket option. Bird chiles are dried red Thai chiles. You can substitute green bell peppers for cubanelle peppers, if desired. The pork belly has a tendency to splatter during searing in step 4; use a splatter guard to minimize oil splattering. Be sure to double bag the pork to protect against seam failure. For more about sous vide cooking, refer to our sous vide guide.

Instructions

  1.  Using sous vide circulator, bring water to 170°F/77°C in 7-quart container.
  2.  Rub pork with 1 tablespoon chili paste and place in 1-gallon zipper-lock freezer bag. Seal bag, pressing out as much air as possible. Place bag in second 1-gallon zipper-lock freezer bag and seal bag. Gently lower bag into prepared water bath until pork is fully submerged, and then clip top corner of bag to side of water bath container, allowing remaining air bubbles to rise to top of bag. Reopen 1 corner of zipper, release remaining air bubbles, and reseal bag. Cover and cook for at least 8 hours or up to 9 hours.
  3.  Fill large bowl halfway with ice and water. Submerge zipper-lock bag in ice bath and let sit until pork is chilled, about 15 minutes. Transfer pork to cutting board and pat dry with paper towels. Transfer congealed cooking liquid to small bowl. Slice pork lengthwise into 2-inch-wide strips, and then slice strips crosswise into ¼-inch-thick pieces.
  4.  Heat oil in 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add half of pork in even layer and cook until browned, 2 to 3 minutes per side; transfer to bowl. Repeat with remaining pork. Pour off all but 2 tablespoons fat from skillet.
  5.  Add peppers to fat left in skillet and cook over medium-high, without stirring, until lightly charred, about 3 minutes. Stir in garlic, ginger, and bird chile and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in rice wine and water, scraping up any browned bits, and cook until liquid is reduced by half, about 15 seconds.
  6.  Stir in remaining 3 tablespoons chili paste, reserved cooking liquid, hoisin, and fermented black beans. Add pork and scallion greens and toss to coat. Transfer to serving dish and sprinkle with scallion whites.To Make Ahead Pork belly can be rapidly chilled in ice bath and then refrigerated in zipper-lock bag after step 2 for up to 3 days. To reheat, return sealed bag to water bath set to 170°F/77°C for 30 minutes and then proceed with step 3.

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