Twice Cooked Pork

5 from 1 vote

Twice Cooked Pork (Hui Guo Rou) is a Chinese dish you can’t get enough of. The pork belly is boiled to tender perfection, then stir-fried with a savory, spicy sauce. It’s a restaurant-quality dish that’s easy to make at home! Follow my step-by-step video and tips to recreate this classic tonight.

Prep Time15

Cook Time5

Total Time20

Course: Pork

Cuisine: Chinese Recipes

Keyword: Twice Cooked Pork

Servings: people

Author: Bee Yinn Low

Ingredients

12 oz pork belly with skin
1 teaspoon oil
3 cloves garlic peeled and sliced into pieces
1/2 green bell pepper cut into cubes
1/2 red bell pepper cut into cubes
2 stalks leeks cut diagnocally into 1-in/2.5-cm lengths
1 1/2 tablespoons spicy doubanjiang 豆瓣酱/spicy bean sauce
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon Shaoxing wine or Chinese rice wine

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Bring a pot of water to a rolling boil. Add the pork belly and cook for 10 minutes, or until fully cooked through. Remove the pork belly, set it aside, and let it cool.
Slice the pork belly into thin pieces and set them aside.
Heat the oil in a wok or skillet over medium-high heat. Add the pork belly and cook until the surface turns slightly brown.
Discard any excess fat from the wok or skillet. Push the pork to one side and then, add the garlic, stirring to combine well with the pork belly.
Add the green and red bell peppers, leeks, and stir for a few seconds. Then add the spicy doubanjiang, soy sauce, and cooking wine.
Stir to combine the ingredients well, then dish out and serve immediately with steamed rice.

Video

Notes

For the best texture and flavor, go for pork belly with a 50/50 meat-to-fat ratio. This gives you that rich, melt-in-your-mouth experience. If you end up with a cut that’s leaner (like 70% meat, 30% fat), no worries! Just don’t overcook it—once the surface turns a light brown, move on to the next step to keep it juicy and tender.

Don't skip the boiling! I know it might seem like an extra step, but trust me, boiling the pork belly first is key to getting that tender, melt-in-your-mouth texture. It helps render out some of the fat and makes stir-frying so much easier. If you don’t boil it long enough, the texture could turn out tougher than you want—and we definitely don’t want that.

While the pork is boiling, use the time to prep your other ingredients—slice the bell peppers, leeks, and garlic. This way, you’re all set to move straight into stir-frying without any delays!

Nutrition