Rich, sticky and deeply comforting, this caramelised pork belly on sesame samp is the kind of dish that rewards a little patience. Slow-simmered with warming spices, ginger and lemongrass, the pork becomes melt-in-your-mouth tender before being finished until gloriously caramelised. Served over nutty sesame samp, it’s a hearty, flavour-packed meal perfect for slow weekends or when you want to impress with minimal fuss.
Caramelised pork belly on sesame samp
Ingredients
- Pork
- 1.2 kg Pork rashers, without skins, cut into 3cm chunks
- Salt and pepper
- Vegetable oil
- 10 ml Sesame oil
- 2 Pieces Star anise
- 1 Cinnamon stick, broken
- 4 cm Ginger, sliced
- 3 Cloves garlic, sliced
- 2 Stalks lemongrass, crushed and halved
- 45 ml Fish sauce
- 500 ml Pork or chicken stock
- 125 ml Coconut or treacle sugar
- Sesame samp
- 4 Cloves garlic, finely chopped
- 5 ml Sesame oil (plus extra for serving)
- Vegetable oil
- 500 ml Samp, soaked overnight
- Salt
- 45 ml Toasted sesame seeds
- 1/2 Bunch spring onions, finely sliced (plus extra for serving)
Instructions
Season the pork rashers well with salt and pepper.
Heat generous glug of oil in a saucepan and fry the rashers until they begin to crisp around the edges and release quite a bit of oil.
Tip in all the remaining ingredients, except for the sugar.
Cover and simmer gently.
In the meantime, fry the garlic in the sesame oil and a glug of vegetable oil until fragrant.
Tip in the soaked and drained samp and cook in salted water according to the packet instructions.
When cooked, drain and toss with some extra sesame oil, sesame seeds and spring onions.
Once the pork is very tender and the liquid has evaporated it should begin to fry in the fat that has been cooked out.
Fry the pork gently, stirring carefully and often, until it begins to crisp up again (remove any spices that begin to burn).
Add the sugar and 1/4 cup of water and continue cooking until the pork becomes sticky and caramelised.
Serve the pork over the sesame samp, garnished with a handful of spring onions.
Also See: Pork & apple meatballs in Thai Red Curry
Pork & apple meatballs in Thai Red Curry
Recipe and image: SA Pork
