Yan Jian Rou
盐煎肉·(yán jiān ròu)
Jiachangcai (The Weeknight Wok)
This isn’t a weekend project; the smell of fermented chili bean paste hitting hot pork fat is the smell of a Tuesday night. This is Yan Jian Rou, the faster sister to Twice-Cooked Pork—by skipping the boiling step and frying the pork raw in a carbon-steel wok until the pork fat spits, you unlock the caramelized flavor of Pixian doubanjiang in exactly 15 minutes of active cooking. Start the rice cooker before you even pick up the knife.
Before you start
Remove the pork skin completely.
Because we are utilizing the raw-fry (sheng bao) technique, any skin left on the meat will instantly seize up in the hot oil and become impossibly tough and leathery.
Partially freeze the pork belly to make it easier to slice.
Placing the pork in the freezer for 30 to 40 minutes firms up the fat, allowing your chef's knife to glide through and achieve the necessary paper-thin, 1/8-inch slices.
Separate the chopped leeks into two piles.
Keep the dense white and light green parts separate from the flimsy dark green leaves, as they cook at vastly different rates and need to be added to the wok in stages.
Ingredients
- skinless pork belly8 oz
- leeks2 med
- kosher salt1 tsp
- neutral cooking oil2 tbsp
- Pixian doubanjiang1 1/2 tbsp
- douchi1 tbsp
- Shaoxing wine1 tsp
- dark soy sauce1 tsp
- white sugar1/2 tsp
Method
- 01
Heat a wok or heavy skillet over high heat until a wisp of pale smoke appears, then swirl in the neutral oil to coat the bottom.
This hot wok, cold oil technique creates a non-stick patina so your thinly sliced pork won't stick.
- 02
Immediately add the sliced pork, spread it out, and sprinkle evenly with the kosher salt.
Reduce the heat slightly to medium-high and stir-fry steadily for 3 to 5 minutes. The salt acts as an osmotic agent, extracting cellular moisture so the pork fat renders and the edges curl into golden-brown shapes.
- 03
Push the crisped pork up the sides of the wok to clear a space in the pooled pork fat at the bottom.
Lower the heat to medium. Drop the doubanjiang and douchi directly into the hot fat, stirring constantly for about 30 seconds until the oil turns a brilliant, deep ruby red and an earthy aroma fills the kitchen.
- 04
Toss the pork back into the red oil to coat completely, then pour in the sugar, dark soy sauce, and Shaoxing wine.
Toss rapidly for 15 seconds to allow the sugar to melt and the alcohol to evaporate.
- 05
Add the white and light green parts of the leeks and stir-fry for 60 seconds until they just begin to lose their raw bite.
Finally, toss in the dark green leafy parts for another 15 to 30 seconds until vibrant and slightly wilted, then immediately kill the heat and serve with steaming jasmine rice.
Notes
Seek out true Pixian doubanjiang.
Generic chili bean sauces found in typical Western supermarkets are often laden with excess sugar and pureed starches, which muddy the pure, sharp umami this dish requires.
Do not over-complicate the flavor profile.
It's tempting to add fresh chilies, sesame oil, or Sichuan peppercorns, but the beauty of this authentic homestyle staple lies in its disciplined reliance on only fermented pastes for flavor.
From Cook Sichuan in America.