This is an experiment to see if Sous Vide can produce an improved texture for frozen pork belly. I largely followed the steps from Chefsteps (here and here), brining the pork for almost a week and cooking at 75°C for 7 hours. I must say I am pleased with the result.
The pork was braisey as promised, soft and still juicy. I don’t like pork with streaky texture, which is what you normally end up with especially when using frozen pork. I tried cooking frozen pork belly using the pressure cooker and the result was more dry and streaky than I like it to be.
Although not named specifically, this dish is essentially like the Chinese Hongshaorou (braised pork), where soy sauce is one of the key ingredients to create fragrance. I’ll have to experiment quite a bit more to arrive at the perfect braised frozen pork belly. Next time, I’ll try it without brining, since cooking for 7 hours should be enough to marinate the meat.
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