Meizhou, Guangdong Province — Huizhou area Hakka tradition
Iconic Hakka dish of pork belly steamed for hours atop a bed of sweet-salty mei cai (Huizhou preserved mustard greens) until the fat is silky and trembling and the preserved vegetable has absorbed all the pork fat. The bowl is inverted at the table so the pork crowns the greens. Different from Mao's Red-Braised Pork — this is steamed, not braised.
Sweet-savoury-funky from preserved vegetables absorbing rendered pork fat; intensely comforting and deeply umami
{"Pork belly: blanch, rub with soy sauce and honey, deep-fry briefly to puff and colour skin","Mei cai must be soaked and rinsed several times to remove excess salt and grit","Layer pork skin-side down in bowl, pack mei cai on top, steam 2+ hours","Invert onto serving plate so pork skin glistens on top"}
{"Best mei cai: Huizhou dried preserved mustard greens — slightly sweet variety preferred","Add small amount of sugar to mei cai layer to balance the salt and enhance caramelisation","Serve with plain steamed rice — the braising juices are the sauce"}
{"Insufficient soaking of mei cai — gritty and over-salty results","Not deep-frying pork before steaming — skin won't have characteristic texture","Under-steaming — pork fat should be completely rendered and melting, not chewy"}
Every Grain of Rice — Fuchsia Dunlop