Thit ba roi chay canh gives you pork that is golden brown at the edges and still soft inside, under a thick sauce that clings to every piece. Heat control while it fries is the difficulty, since low heat leaves no crisp edges and high heat dries the meat out.
No oil goes into the pan, since the pork renders its own fat, and that fat then fries the shallot and garlic and carries the sauce. Bring the sauce to a rolling boil until it thickens slightly before the pork goes back in.
This batch weighs about 604g, at roughly 436 calories per 100g.
Method
Wash 500g pork belly and slice it into thin bite sized pieces, about 0.5 to 1cm thick.
Season the pork with 5ml fish sauce, 4.5g kOBE Monk Fruit Blend, 5g minced shallot and 1g pepper for 15 minutes.
Put the seasoned pork in a pan with no oil and fry it over medium heat.
Stir until the meat firms up, renders its fat and the edges turn golden brown and slightly charred. Lift the pork out, leaving a little fat in the pan.
Add the remaining 10g minced shallot, 5g minced garlic and 3g minced chili to the fat and fry until fragrant.
Mix the sauce from 25ml fish sauce, 13.5g kOBE Monk Fruit Blend and 30ml water and pour it in. Bring it to a rolling boil over medium high heat until it thickens slightly.
Return the fried pork, toss quickly until every piece is coated, then turn off the heat.
Sprinkle over the rest of the ground pepper, spoon onto a plate and pour the sauce over. Serve hot with white rice and boiled greens.
Tips
No oil goes in for the frying, since the pork renders its own fat, and frying the shallot and garlic in that fat makes the dish far more fragrant.
A fattier cut of pork belly works better here than the leaner one used for braising.
Slices 0.5 to 1cm thick are right, since thinner ones shrink away in the pan.
Bring the sauce to a rolling boil until it thickens slightly before returning the pork, and every piece comes out evenly coated and glossy.
Spread the pork in a single layer, since stacked pieces steam rather than crisp at the edges.
Need kOBE Monk Fruit Blend?
The recipe above is sweetened with kOBE Monk Fruit Blend, measured 1:1 like sugar. See the product page or send us a message.