Taiwanese Braised Minced Pork Over Rice (肉燥饭)

Classic Taiwanese Rice Bowl. Minced pork is braised with mushrooms, spices, shallots for a umami filled dish adapted from Woks of Life

Prep Time2

Cook Time1 30

Course: dinner, lunch, one bowl meal

Cuisine: Taiwanese

Keyword: Braised MInced Pork, Rice Bowl, Taiwanese

Ingredients

Aromatics

1 cup shallots finely diced
1 tablespoon ginger minced
1 1/2 ounces dried shiitake mushrooms 5-6 large mushrooms, soaked & finely diced
3 tablespoons oil any neutral flavored oil, such as vegetable or canola oil

Meat and Seasonings

1 pound ground pork hand-chopped pork shoulder or pork butt is ideal, but pre-ground is acceptable
1-2 star anise I omit star anise, not a fan
3 tablespoons Shaoxing wine
0.5 ounce rock sugar or 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1/4 cup Fried shallots optional, if using, reduce fresh shallots to 3/4 cup

Braising Liquid

2 tablespoons light soy sauce
1 tablespoon dark soy sauce
1 tablespoon oyster sauce Lee Kum Kee
1/2 teaspoon ground white pepper
1/4 teaspoon five spice powder
2-1/2 cups water including shiitake mushroom soaking water

Sides and Garnishes

3-5 eggs
1/4 cup scallions chopped, white and green parts
salt to taste optional, likely not needed

Instructions

Rehydrate the dried shiitake mushrooms, rinse them off and soak in hot water for at least 2 hours or until soft. Squeeze out the liquid, and dice into ¼ inch pieces. Reserve the soaking liquid for later use..
Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a wok or large skillet over medium heat. Cook the ginger and shallots for 1-2 minutes, or until the shallots turn translucent. Stir in the mushrooms, and cook for another 2 minutes.
Increase the heat to high. Add 1 additional tablespoon of oil, along with the ground pork and star anise. Cook until the meat is opaque.
Stir in the Shaoxing wine to deglaze the wok or pan. Add the rock sugar (or sugar), light soy sauce, dark soy sauce, oyster sauce, white pepper, five spice powder, and 2 cups of water (including the mushroom soaking water. Just be sure to leave behind any sediment from soaking the mushrooms).
Bring to a boil. Once boiling, cover, reduce the heat to medium/medium-low, and simmer for 20 minutes.
Meanwhile, hard-boil the eggs. Bring a medium pot of water to a rolling boil. Gently lower the eggs into the water using a large spoon, taking care not to break the shells. Boil rapidly for 30 seconds, and then reduce the heat to low. Cover, and simmer the eggs for 10 minutes. Remove to a bowl of ice water. When the eggs are cool to the touch, peel them and rinse them under running water.
After the pork has simmered for 20 minutes, add the eggs to the mixture, making sure they’re submerged in the sauce. At this point, you may need to add another ½ cup to 1 cup of water to ensure there’s enough liquid to submerge the eggs. Cover and simmer the mixture for an additional 10 minutes.
Uncover the wok. If the sauce is too thin, turn up the heat to medium high, and reduce it down, stirring carefully so as not to break the eggs.
Stir in the scallions and salt to taste. To serve, give each person one egg (cut in half if desired) and ladle the pork over rice.

Notes