Tau Yew Bak 豆油肉 Soya Sauce Pork Belly Stew - "Malaysian Monday 23"

We Melbournians can be a bunch of whingers when it comes to the weather; it is always too cold, too hot, too wet, too dry and the list goes on. We are into the 2nd month of summer but the elusive hot days are still avoiding us so one can only imagine the outrage in our weather obsessed town. I on the other hand decided to take the opportunity to make a hearty pork belly stew on one of the chilly summer nights. Tau yew bak (豆油肉) meaning soya sauce meat in the Hokkien dialect can be found all over Southeast Asia (with their respective local touches) wherever there are Hokkiens or Teochews migrants, remember a similar dish (ka muu palo, pork leg stew) I posted recently?. I first tried this at a childhood friend's house when I was 12 and was instantly hooked. After obtaining the recipe from my friend's mother, I cooked my first pot of tau yew bak soon after and have not looked back since. This is perfect for all my friends and readers who are experiencing one of the coldest winter in record; the beautiful aroma that fills your kitchen will blow your winter blues away long before you get to taste the delicious stew.

P.S Remember to check out the 6th round up of Muhibbah Malaysian Monday.

original recipe by Mrs. Chan
serves 4 as part of a Chinese meal
you'll need;
1 kg of pork belly, cut into 10 cm strips and marinated with a dash of dark soy
3 tbs of rock sugar
30 cloves of garlic, peeled
5 slices of ginger
5 dried chillies
1 cassia bark
1 star anise
1 tsp of five spice powder
2 tbs of light soy
2 tbs of dark soy
2 l of stock or water
4 to 6 hard boiled eggs, peeled
*tofu puffs can be added together with the eggs

Don't be alarmed by the amount of garlic used here as they will melt into the delicious sauce after 2 hours of slow cooking.

Marinate the pork belly strips with a dash of dark soy.

Brown the pork strips in batches and set aside.

Peel the hard boiled eggs and set aside.

Add a little oil in a pot and add in the rock sugar;  when the sugar melts and turn golden add in the garlic, ginger slices and aromatics and cook for 3 minutes before adding the stock and seasonings. Cover and simmer for 1.5 to 2 hours.

Remove the impurities and excess fat from time to time.

Add eggs and cook uncovered during the last 20 minutes. Check for seasonings and add a little dark caramel sauce if one prefer a darker stew.

Serve the melt in your mouth pork belly stew with plenty of steamed rice and perhaps a simple stir fried greens.

Next time instead of whinging about the cold summer evening, make a big pot of tau yew bak instead!

My friend Sharon from Test With A Skewer will be hosting the first event of 2011. Please send all your  January entries to its.sharon.gmail.com, to find out more about the event please click HERE.