Hand pulled Chinese cabbage with Pork Belly

If you’ve never hand-pulled cabbage before, you’re about to fall in love with the texture. This dish is a perfect example of everyday Sichuan home cooking — humble ingredients, bold flavors, and that signature numbing-spicy aroma from dried chilies and Sichuan peppercorns. The pork belly melts in your mouth, the cabbage stays tender-crisp, and everything comes together in one wok for a quick and deeply satisfying stir-fry. Whether you’re cooking for the family or just craving something savory and comforting, this dish hits all the right notes. Let’s get cooking!

Ingredients:

Half head of medium size Taiwanese flat cabbage (about 1 lb)

1/4 cup+1tbsp of water 

6-7 dried Sichuan chili peppers 

1/2 tsp Sichuan peppercorn 

4-5 cloves of garlic (crushed)

150g pork belly slice into small pieces 

The Sauce: 

2 tbsp soy sauce 

1 tbsp Chinese vinegar 

1 tsp sugar 

1 tsp corn starch

Salt to taste

1 tbsp water 

Instructions:

1.     Mix the sauce ingredients in a small bowl set aside. 

2.     Wash and hand pull the cabbage into 3”x3” size pieces, set on the side let dry, or dry with a paper towel so the water won’t spatter in the hot oil. 

3.     Cut the pork belly into 1”x1” size pieces, set aside. 

4.     Heat the wok on high heat,  then add 1/4 cup water and the bacon. Cook the bacon in the water until the most of the bacon fat has rendered.  Remove the bacon with a slotted spoon and set aside. Leave the bacon fat in the wok. 

5.     Heat the bacon fat on high heat until smoking, then add the dried chili peppers and Sichuan peppercorns.  Stir fry for about 20 seconds, then add the garlic and stir fry for 10 more seconds.

6.     Add the cabbage stir fry with all the ingredients for about 5 minutes until the cabbage is wilted but still crunchy.

7.     Add the sauce to the cabbage, mix well, add the bacon and stir fry for another minute. Serve immediately.