Sweet Steamed Pork Belly 夹沙肉 Jia Sha Rou or Tian Shao Bai

This dish also called Tian Shao Bai in Sichuan, This one is going to confuse a lot of you. Pork belly with sugar. My American friends always say: too fatty, not healthy. But let me tell you something.

In old Sichuan, fat was the most precious thing. Fat was energy. My grandma's generation worked in the fields from sunrise to sunset. Fat pork kept them alive. And there is an old saying: when you sit with the ladies, grab the lean meat first. When you sit with grandma, grab the fat. Because grandma has no teeth. The fat just melts.

The secret to this dish is time. You have to steam it for the full two hours. That is how you turn heavy, greasy pork belly into something that melts on your tongue like glass. All the oil comes out into the rice. What is left is pure collagen and sweetness.

Ingredients

For the pork:

• 1 lb (450g) pork belly
• 4-5 slices ginger
• 2 green onions (cut into long sections)
• 3 tbsp Shaoxing cooking wine
• Red bean paste (for stuffing)

For the red sugar syrup (Tang Se):

• 150g red sugar (Hong Tang)
• 100g rock sugar
• 200g water
• 25g cooking oil

For the sticky rice topping:

• 300g glutinous rice (soaked for 2 hours)
• 2 tbsp white sugar
• 1 tbsp lard
• 3-4 tbsp of the red sugar syrup (from above)

Directions

1. Boil the pork belly with ginger, green onions, and cooking wine for 20-25 minutes until about 80% cooked. Remove and let it cool so you can handle it.
2. Cut the butterfly slices. Make the first cut without going all the way through. Make the second cut all the way through. It opens like a little book. Stuff red bean paste inside each pocket. You should get about 8-12 slices.
3. Place the pork skin-side down in a steaming bowl. Arrange them neatly — this is the side people will see when you flip it.
4. Make the syrup. Heat cooking oil in a wok, add the red sugar. Watch it bubble. When it gets dark like amber, turn the heat down. Let it cool a little, then carefully add the hot water and rock sugar. Do NOT add water when the oil is super hot — safety first. Simmer for 15 minutes until you get a thick syrup.
5. Mix the sticky rice with white sugar, lard, and 3-4 tablespoons of the syrup. Pack this tightly on top of the pork in the bowl.
6. Pour 2 tablespoons of syrup over the pork slices before adding the rice.
7. Steam. Medium heat for 1.5 hours, then reduce to low and steam another 30 minutes. Full 2 hours total.
8. The flip. Place a plate on top of the bowl. Hold tight. Flip it over. Lift the bowl. The pork should be on top now with the red sugar syrup dripping down like caramel. This is the moment.

Chinese Mom Tips

The secret to non-greasy fat is TIME. You must steam it for the full 2 hours. This is not optional. The long steaming renders all the heavy grease out into the sticky rice, leaving only soft, sticky collagen behind. If you only steam for one hour, it will be greasy and heavy. If you go the full two hours, it melts on your tongue.

Why lard in the sticky rice? Lard keeps the rice shiny and prevents it from sticking to the bowl. You can use less if you want, but do not skip it completely. It makes a big difference in the texture and the flip.

Watch full 9 Bowls recipes here: