Guilin Rice Noodles (Guilin Mi Fen / 桂林米粉)

Place the pork bones in a large pot, cover with cold water, bring to a boil, and blanch for 5 minutes. Drain and rinse the bones under cold water to remove impurities. Return the bones to the pot with 2.5 litres of fresh water. Add the dried mushrooms, star anise, cassia, dried tangerine peel, and dried chillies. Bring to a vigorous boil, then reduce to a steady simmer. Simmer for a minimum of 8 hours, topping up water as needed to keep the bones submerged. The broth is ready when it is deep amber in colour and intensely savoury — dilute or pale broth means more time is required.

Braise the pork belly or waxed pork in a portion of the finished master broth — or in soy, rice wine, and water — until completely tender and deeply coloured. If using waxed pork (la rou), sauté it first before braising. Remove and allow to rest, then slice thinly. The slices should hold their shape without falling apart.

Bring a separate pot of unseasoned water to a rolling boil. Working in batches, blanch the fresh round rice noodles briefly — 20 to 30 seconds — until just heated through and supple. Do not over-cook: the noodles should be tender yet retain a clean, slightly resilient texture. Drain and divide among four warmed bowls.

Ladle the hot master broth generously over the noodles in each bowl. The broth should arrive at the table steaming and deeply fragrant — the aroma of spice, pork, and dried mushroom should be immediate and pronounced.

Arrange the toppings over the noodles in each bowl: sliced braised pork, fried peanuts, pickled daikon, spring onion, and a dried chilli. The pickled daikon is not optional — its sour crunch is the direct counterpoint to the richness of the broth.

Set the condiment table: rice vinegar, chilli sauce, and sesame oil in individual vessels. Each diner adjusts their own bowl at the table to balance the sour, spiced, and sesame registers against the broth.