I love love love pork. My personal favourites are pork belly and pork spare ribs. Two very different pork cuts but they have the same satisfying effect on pork lovers like you and me. &They are not just easy to cook but such a crowd-pleaser with kids and adults.
This dish represents Chinese cooking at its best – juicy fatty succulent pork belly is slow-cooked and simmered with aromatic spices to penetrate its flavours into the pork while breaking down its meat and fat.
The end result is tremendously delicious with the fall-off-the-skin pork meat and sweet sticky sauce. 
So, remind me again what’s not to love about pork?
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Sticky Szechuan Pork with Toasted Sesame Seeds
- Total Time: 1 hour 55 minutes
- Yield: 2 1x
Description
Juicy succulent pork belly is slow-cooked and simmered with aromatic spices. The end result is tremendously delicious with the fall-off-the-skin pork meat and sweet sticky sauce.
Ingredients
- 500 g (1 lb 2 oz) boneless pork belly, cut into equal size of 1 inch wide pieces
- 2 tbsp (30 ml) vegetable oil
- 6 star anise
- 4 dried chilli, roughly chopped
- 1 inch piece ginger, skin-on and roughly sliced
- 2 cups (480 ml) hot water
- 1 tsp sea salt
- 2 tbsp (25 g) sugar
- 1 tbsp (15 ml) rice vinegar
- 1 tbsp (15 ml) soy sauce
- 2 tbsp sesame seeds, toasted
Instructions
- Heat oil in a deep wok over high heat. Once it’s smoking hot, throw in the dried chillies and star anise. Stir fry to release the aromas for 30 secs until fragrant. Add the pork belly, ginger and salt into the wok. Continue to stir fry for another 3 mins or until the pork starts to turn a little brown.
- Slowly pour the hot water into the wok, just enough to cover the pork belly. Bring to a boil, cover and reduce heat to low and slowly simmer for 1 1/2 hours or until the pork is falling-off-the-skin tender.
- Remove pork, drain and set aside. With a skimmer, skim off any excess fat/oil from the surface of the liquid left in the wok.
- To prepare the sauce, mix the sugar, rice vinegar, soy sauce and 1 tbsp water in a small bowl. Then add them into the liquid in the wok. Stir to mix well. Over high heat, boil continuously until the sauce has thicken or reduced by half.
- Return pork to the wok. Gently stir the pork into the sauce, ensuring they mix well. Throw in half the sesame seeds. Coat the pork well. Continue to cook until the sauce has become thick and sticky.
- Pour everything into a serving bowl. Sprinkle the remaining sesame seeds. Serve immediately with warm jasmine rice.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 1 hour 45 minutes
- Category: Main Course
- Cuisine: Chinese
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 serving
- Calories: 540
Frequently Asked Questions
Why use pork belly instead of another cut?
Pork belly is the right cut for this dish. The fat renders into the braising liquid over 1.5 hours at low heat, keeping the meat incredibly juicy while breaking down into that fall-off-the-skin texture. A leaner cut would dry out long before it gets tender.
What gives this dish its Szechuan character?
Six star anise and four roughly chopped dried chillies go into the smoking-hot wok at the very start, before any other ingredient. That 30-second stir-fry releases their aroma into the oil and infuses every piece of pork belly right from the beginning. The ginger added with the pork deepens it further.
How do I know when the sauce is ready to coat the pork?
After returning the pork to the wok, cook over high heat until the sauce is thick and sticky and coats every piece. You will see it go from watery to glossy. Sprinkle in half the sesame seeds at that stage, coat the pork well, then finish with the remaining seeds when you plate it.
Can I skim the fat before making the sauce?
Yes, and it is worth doing. After the pork has slow-simmered for 1.5 hours, remove the meat and use a skimmer to lift the excess fat off the surface of the braising liquid. Then mix in the sugar, rice vinegar, soy sauce, and a tablespoon of water and reduce over high heat. Skimming first means the final sauce is sticky and glossy rather than greasy.
Doubled the recipe, but used only 1 cup of water to boil and simmer, and only at half hour because my pork is young and tender. It didn’t turn sticky but the taste was delicious! Definitely making this again.