Braised Pork Belly Noodles

Inspired by @thewoksoflife's Lu Rou Fan recipe 

Servings: 4

Time: Total 2 hours, prep 20 min

Difficulty level: medium

Ingredients

• 1 box of Nona Lim Laksa noodles
• 1 lb skin-on pork belly, cut into 1-1.5 inch pieces
• 2 teaspoons vegetable oil
• 1/2 oz. rock sugar or 2.5 teaspoons of granulated sugar
• 1 medium-sized onion or a couple of shallots, finely chopped
• 8 shiitake mushrooms, cut into 1/2 inch pieces (if using dried mushrooms, soak ahead of time as instructed on package) 
• 1/4 cup shaoxing wine or dry sherry
• 3 tablespoons light soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons dark soy sauce
• 2 cups water
• 4 soft boiled eggs, peeled, optional
• Sliced cucumbers for garnish, optional

 For spices, wrap in cheese cloth and tie with kitchen string:

• 3 star anise 
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 6 cloves
• 3 bay leaves 
• 2 teaspoons Sichuan peppercorns
• 2 3-inch pieces dried or fresh orange peel
• 2 slices ginger

 Instructions:

1. Bring a medium pot of water to a boil, and blanch the chopped pork belly for 2 minutes. Drain and set aside.
2. Heat the oil in a wok over low heat, and add the sugar. Cook the sugar until it starts to melt and then add the onions. Turn up the heat to medium-high and stir-fry the onions for a minute. Add the mushrooms and stir-fry for another couple minutes until completely softened.
3. Add the blanched pork, shaoxing wine, light soy sauce, dark soy sauce and water. Stir and bring the mixture to a boil. Once boiling, add the spices (which should be tied in cheesecloth), and turn the heat to the lowest setting. Simmer for 1.5 hours, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking.
4. At this point the meat should be fall-apart tender. Remove the spice packet and turn up the heat to medium high to thicken the sauce, stirring occasionally. This process should take about 5-minutes. The sauce should be thick enough to coat a spoon, but there should still be plenty of it left.
5. While the sauce is thickening, blanch Laksa noodles quickly in boiling water for 30 seconds and drain.
6. To finish the dish, plate noodles in bowls and spoon pork belly and sauce over noodles. Add soft boiled egg and cucumbers, if using. Enjoy!