Tag: pork

Lions head meatball soup

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Big juicy meatball lions heads with Chinese cabbage manes, floating in a lovely savoury broth. Feeds 2-4, depending on hunger and wish for leftovers.

  • 500g pork mince
  • 4 garlic cloves, finely minced
  • 2 tbsp grated ginger
  • 2 spring onions, finely chopped
  • 6 water chestnuts, finely chopped
  • ¼ tsp ground white pepper
  • 50ml shaoxing rice wine
  • 3 tbsp soy sauce
  • 1 tbsp toasted sesame oil
  • 1 egg, beaten
  • 1 tbsp cornflour
  • ½ tsp salt
  • 2 tbsp veg oil
  • 4 cloves garlic, peeled and bashed
  • 2″ ginger, sliced into thick coins
  • 4 spring onions, cut into 3″ pieces
  • 3 tbsp soy sauce
  • 2 tsp brown sugar
  • 2 tbsp shaoxing
  • 1 chicken stock cube
  • Chinese cabbage leaves, cut into vertical quarters
  1. Mix meatball ingredients (the first 12 listed) together well and form into golfball-sized meatballs
  2. Lower into boiling water, turn to a simmer and cook for 5 mins, then remove. Keep the cooking liquid
  3. Heat 1 tbsp oil in a deep frying pan and fry the meatballs briefly on each side until golden, then remove and set to one side
  4. In the same pan, add the next 1 tbsp oil and then fry the garlic, ginger, spring onion until softened but not brown
  5. Add soy sauce, shaoxing, sugar and stock. Stir together, then add 1 litre of the meatball water (topping up with boiling water from the kettle if there’s not enough)
  6. Bring to the boil then add the meatballs back in, curling the cabbage leaf strips around the meatballs in the pan (voila lion+mane)
  7. Simmer until the cabbage is cooked and the meatballs are hot through

Pork, squash and crispy rice salad

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The very thing for when you’re feeling autumnal and cosy, but not like eating stew. This is fragrant, herby, crunchy and soft – and comfortingly easy to eat with a spoon

  • 160g basmati rice
  • ½ butternut squash, deseeded and cut into.chunky pieces
  • Veg oil
  • Salt
  • 300g pork mince (10% fat)
  • 2 banana shallots, peeled and cut into thin rings
  • 1 red chilli, minced
  • 2 cloves of garlic, minced
  • 1 stick lemongrass, trimmed and minced
  • Handful mint leaves, roughly chopped
  • Handful coriander leaves, roughly chopped
  • 1 red chilli, minced
  • 1 tbsp sesame oil
  • 1 tbsp fish sauce
  • Juice of 1 lime
  • 1 tsp soft light brown sugar
  1. Cook the rice (however you like – or 320ml boiling water, add a pinch of salt and the rice, stick the lid on and simmer for 10 mins, then leave to stand with the lid on for a further 5 mins) and then leave to one side to cool
  2. In the meantime, heat oven to 190C fan (210C). Toss the squash with 1 tbsp veg oil and a pinch of salt, then tumble onto a baking tray in a single layer. Bake for 40 mins until tender and lightly browned around the edges. Remove to a large bowl
  3. Make the dressing by combining the red chilli, sesame oil, fish sauce, lime juice and sugar. Mix and check seasoning.
  4. Add 2 tbsp veg oil to a large frying pan over medium heat. Put the cooked rice into the pan, and press down with a spatula. Fry for 5-7 mins, until golden and crispy, then flip over. Fry for the same time on the other side, breaking it up into chunks with your spatula as it cooks. Tip it into the bowl with the squash
  5. Put the pork mince in a bowl with the garlic, chilli, lemongrass, shallots and ½ tsp salt. Mix well to combine
  6. Heat the same frying pan again on high with 1 tbsp veg oil then add the pork mince, pressed down in a sort of thick pork pancake. Fry for about 5 mins, until it is golden and then flip pieces over, breaking it up into chunks with a spatula as it browns.
  7. Once cooked through, add the pork to the squash and rice, plus the coriander and mint. Pour over the dressing and toss through. Serve immediately

Incredibly crunchy crackly pork belly

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Imagine the most deliciously tender meat, crowned with the crackliest, crunchiest crackling ever. That’s what this is.

  • 500g piece of pork belly (no bones)
  • 2 tsp shaoxing rice wine
  • ½ tsp five spice powder
  • ½ tsp pepper
  • ¼ tsp fine salt
  • 2 tsp rice vinegar
  • 150g fine salt
  1. Combine the five spice, pepper and salt
  2. Turn the pork belly skin-side down and rub the flesh with shaoxing, then sprinkle with the spice powder all over except the skin
  3. Flip the pork right-side up and place in an open container. Dry the skin off with paper towels and leave uncovered in the fridge overnight to properly dry out
  4. Pre-heat the oven to 150C fan (170C) and remove pork from fridge
  5. Put the pork onto a sheet of foil and fold the sides up around it to enclose the meat snugly, leaving a rim sticking up around ½ cm above the pork skin
  6. Place your pork package on a baking tray and brush skin with rice vinegar. Then carefully spread the salt over the skin in an even layer, trying not to let too much fall down the sides of the package
  7. Roast for 1½ hours, then remove the pork from oven and transfer the foiled pork onto a chopping board
  8. Turn oven up to 240C fan
  9. Remove the foil and scrape the salt off, thoroughly brushing the top to remove all of it
  10. Place the now-nude pork on a rack over the same baking tray and, once the oven is to temperature, roast for a further 30 mins until the crackling is golden and crispy
  11. In high excitement, turn the crackly pork onto its skin-side to cut into squares. Try not to eat it all before it gets to the table

Serve with rice, pak choi and a vinegary-spicy dip or sauce to counteract the salty fattiness

And by all means exchange the SE Asian flavours for Western ones for a different kind of dish

Miso pork belly

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Rich, savoury and super-simple to make. Feeds 2

  • 400g pork belly slices, cut into pieces
  • 2 tbsp veg oil
  • 2 cloves garlic, sliced
  • 6 spring onions, sliced
  • 2 tbsp white miso
  • 2 tbsp tamari
  • 3 tbsp mirin
  1. Bring a large pan of water to the boil and slip in the pork belly pieces
  2. Bring back to the boil and simmer for 5 mins
  3. Drain the pork and discard the water
  4. Mix together the miso, tamari and mirin in a small bowl with 150ml water
  5. In a shallow saucepan or deep frying pan, heat the veg oil over medium
  6. Fry the pork belly until golden and then remove
  7. Turn the heat down and briefly cook the garlic and spring onions
  8. Pour the miso mixture into the pan and bring to a bubble
  9. Add the pork back in and stir
  10. Turn to the lowest heat, cover and cook for 1-2 hours. Stir occasionally and add a little more water if it gets too dry
  11. Serve on steamed rice with a scattering of sesame seeds – plus a crisp and crunchy salad with sesame dressing on the side

Swedish meatballs in the slow cooker

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So savoury, so soothing. A bowl of these tender meatballs in gravy could solve almost anything. Feeds 4

  • 1 onion, minced
  • 1 garlic clove, minced
  • 350g beef mince
  • 350g pork mince
  • 100g breadcrumbs
  • 1 large egg
  • ½ tsp allspice
  • Salt and pepper
  • 3 tbsp butter
  • 2 tbsp plain flour
  • 1 tsp dijon mustard
  • 500ml beef stock
  • 100ml single cream
  1. Add all the ingredients for the meatballs in a bowl, mix until combined and homogenous. Shape into small walnut-sized meatballs.
  2. Add 1 tbsp butter to a big frying pan on a medium-high heat and fry the meatballs until browned all over but not necessarily cooked through. Fry in batches so you don’t overcrowd the pan.
  3. Transfer the meatballs to the slow cooker and get as much of the juices in too
  4. Then to make the sauce (you can use the same pan if it’s fairly deep, or just use a saucepan – I love not having to wash more things up, so I’ll always re-use pans if possible) – melt 2 tbsp butter over a low heat and slowly mix in the flour.
  5. When fully incorporated, add the stock and mustard. Heat to a bubble whilst continuously stirring. Mix in the cream, taste for seasoning and then pour over the meatballs in the slow cooker.
  6. Cook on low for 6 hours. Serve with mashed potato, rice or (for the full Ikea experience) chips!

To reduce the meat content in this dish, substitute 1 drained and pureed tin of green lentils for either the beef or pork.

And to make it gluten free, substitute the breadcrumbs for 3 heaped tbsp of uncooked basmati rice. Then cook the meatballs in the beef stock and cream without making a roux with the 2 tbsp butter and flour – instead, once it’s finished cooking, remove the meatballs and decant the sauce into a saucepan or deep frying pan. Heat the sauce to a bubble and whisk in a slurry of 2 heaped tbsp cornflour mixed with 2-3 tsp water. Cook gently until it thickens, then return the meatballs to the sauce and serve.

Meatballs and noodles

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Meatballs, vegetables, sauce, noodles. Everything delicious, a brilliant quick weeknight dinner.

  • 400g pork mince
  • 4 tbsp dried breadcrumbs
  • 1 egg
  • 1 green chilli, finely chopped
  • 1 garlic clove, grated
  • 5 spring onions, finely chopped
  • 2 tsp sesame oil
  • ½ tsp salt
  • 2 tbsp veg oil
  • 1 inch piece fresh ginger, grated
  • 200ml chicken stock
  • 2 tbsp hoisin sauce
  • 3 tbsp soy sauce
  • 1 tbsp soft light brown sugar
  • 400g fresh noodles, such as udon or flat rice noodles
  • 100g mange tout, sliced in half lengthways
  • 100g baby corns, quartered lengthways
  • Fresh coriander, chopped
  1. In a bowl, mix together the minced pork, breadcrumbs, about half the spring onions, the egg, garlic, 1 tsp sesame oil, chilli and salt
  2. Using your hands, roll into around 16 meatballs
  3. Heat the veg oil in a large, deep, lidded frying pan over medium-high heat
  4. Add meatballs and use tongs to brown them all over
  5. Remove the meatballs, turn the heat down and add the remaining 1 tsp sesame oil
  6. Add the ginger and cook for around 30 secs before adding the chicken stock, soy sauce, brown sugar and hoisin
  7. Stir to combine and bring to a bubbly simmer
  8. Return meatballs to the pan and put the lid on
  9. Cook for 6 mins then scatter the baby corn over the top and put the lid back on for 2 mins
  10. Then add the mange tout to the pan and cook with the lid on for a further 2 mins
  11. Add the noodles to the pan and use the tongs to fold everything together until completely coated in sauce
  12. Serve garnished with the remaining spring onion and fresh coriander

2 sorts of sausage rolls

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Different, but both delicious. Lovely nibbles. Makes 16.

  • 400g pork sausage meat (or sausages squeezed out of its skins)
  • 320g puff pastry sheet
  • 1 tbsp wholegrain mustard
  • 3 tbsp onion marmalade
  • Handful dried breadcrumbs
  • Large handful of fresh herbs, finely chopped (sage, parsley, chives, savoury)
  • 1 clove garlic, grated
  • Black pepper
  • 1 egg, beaten
  • 1 tbsp mustard seeds, cracked a little with a pestle and mortar (or 1 tbsp kalonji/black onion seeds)
  • 1 tbsp pul biber (or ½ tbsp paprika)
  1. Pre-heat the oven to 190C fan (210C)
  2. Take the pastry out of the fridge 15 mins before you’re ready to make the sausage rolls
  3. Divide the sausage meat in half into 2 bowls
  4. Into one half, mix the wholegrain mustard, onion marmalade and dried breadcrumbs
  5. And into the other, mix the chopped herbs, garlic and a good grind of black pepper
  6. Mix well until the ingredients are completely combined
  7. Unroll the pastry and cut it lengthways down the middle into 2 strips
  8. Form each sausage mixture into a long thin cylinder the length of the pastry strip and place one down the middle of each strip
  9. Along the long edge, tightly roll the pastry over the sausage meat and then keep rolling until the sausage is enclosed and the edge is underneath
  10. Repeat with the other roll
  11. Brush the top with egg. Onto the onion and mustard rolls sprinkle the mustard seeds or kalonji, and on the herb and garlic rolls sprinkle the pul biber or paprika
  12. Wet a sharp knife with a little water and cut the sausage rolls into 8 equal-sized pieces. If the knife starts to stick, just wet it again
  13. Lift the little rolls onto a lined baking tray and pop into the oven
  14. Bake for 20 mins until golden brown and cooked through
  15. Lift the sausage rolls off the tray onto a rack to cool before scoffing enthusiastically

Hoisin pork puffs

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Puffs of delight. A delicate shell of shiny puff pastry encasing a deeply rich, soft, sweet/savoury barbecue pork, tender and succulent. I dare you to just eat one. The perfect thing to eat with a beer in the garden at a party or as part of a dim sum spread. Or just for lunch.

  • 350g pork fillet, trimmed and cut into 1-2cm cubes
  • 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
  • 3cm ginger, peeled and finely chopped
  • 2 tsp soy sauce
  • 4 tbsp hoisin sauce
  • 3 tbsp oyster sauce
  • 1 tsp sesame oil
  • ½ tsp Chinese 5 spice
  • 1 tsp cornflour mixed with 1 tsp cold water
  • 320g ready-made and rolled puff pastry
  • 1 egg, beaten
  • Sesame seeds to sprinkle
  1. In a bowl, combine the pork with the garlic, ginger, soy sauce, hoisin, oyster sauce, sesame oil and 5 spice
  2. After it has marinated for at least 30 mins (and up to 12 hrs), heat a large non-stick frying pan over a medium heat
  3. Tip in the pork mixture. Stir and cook until the pork is cooked through and starting to brown, and the marinade is sticky and thick, almost completely disappeared. This will happen pretty quickly, in 5-10 mins
  4. Tip the cooked pork out onto a plate and add 100ml cold water to the pan, scraping all the bits off the bottom
  5. Pour in the cornflour slurry and stir in, making sure it’s well-combined
  6. Turn the heat down and continue to stir until it makes a thick sauce
  7. Pour this over the pork and mix through
  8. Let the pork mixture cool to room temperature before making the pastries
  9. Preheat the oven to 180C fan (200C) and take the pastry out of the fridge to let it come to room temp
  10. Unroll your pastry and cut into 9 rectangles
  11. Place a heaped tsp of the pork filling in the centre. Then bring together the corners and pinch closed, then the edges, folding together to seal. The parcel should be roughly round-ish
  12. Flip the bun over so the edges are underneath and gently place on the lined baking tray
  13. Brush with beaten egg and sprinkle with sesame seeds
  14. Bake for 20-30 mins until the pastry is golden

Bun cha

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Succulent little balls of pork and herbs, simple to throw together and perfect with a cold beer. A Vietnamese name, but without any claim to authenticity. Serve with fine rice noodles, chilli sauce and lettuce leaves to wrap if you want to make them into a meal. Makes around 10.

  • 400g minced pork
  • 1 egg, beaten
  • 5 spring onions, finely chopped
  • 3cm piece of ginger, peeled and minced
  • 1 garlic clove, minced
  • 2 tsp fish sauce
  • 1 tbsp soy sauce
  • 2 tsp maple syrup
  • 1 tbsp sriracha
  • Handful fresh coriander, finely chopped
  1. Thoroughly mix everything together in a bowl
  2. Cover and leave to rest for 30 mins in the fridge. Then lightly scoop up and roll into golfball-sized balls without overworking or compressing the mixture too much
  3. Grill, fry or barbecue for 10 mins until cooked through and serve straight away

Pork ragu

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Warm, rich and comforting. Eat over pasta or a jacket potato. Serves 4 generously.

  • 900g pork shoulder, trimmed and cut into chunky pieces
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 100g pancetta, chopped
  • 2 onions, finely chopped
  • 2 carrots, finely chopped
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 2 tbsp tomato puree
  • 250ml red wine
  • Couple of shakes worcestershire sauce
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1 tin chopped tomatoes
  • ½ tsp sugar
  • Salt and pepper
  1. Heat the oil in a deep frying pan (one with a close-fitting lid) over a high heat
  2. Put in the pieces of pork and leave until they turn brown, then flip them
  3. Brown on all sides and remove from the pan
  4. Turn the heat down and add the pancetta. Stir and cook until it’s crispy round the edges
  5. Then add the onions, carrot and garlic
  6. Stir together and cook for 5-8 mins until soft
  7. Add the wine, worcestershire sauce and tomato puree and stir in, scraping the lovely brown off the bottom of the pan
  8. Bubble for a couple of mins, then add the sugar, bay leaf, tinned tomatoes and 1½ tins of water
  9. Stir together, season well with salt and pepper, and bring to the boil
  10. Put the pork back in the pan and stir everything together
  11. Stick the lid on and put onto the lowest heat (or into an oven at 130C fan)
  12. Cook for 2 hours, stirring every hour or so
  13. Then take the lid off and simmer for a further 30 mins until the sauce is thick and rich. Just keep bubbling if you need to, it may take a little longer
  14. Take off the heat and remove the pork into a bowl
  15. Roughly shred it with 2 forks and scrape it back into the sauce
  16. Stir in and you’re ready to serve