Beer-Braised Pork Belly

There's something about beer that turns me on. Thinking about it lifts my spirits. That's silly, I know. I guess I love beer people; the ones I've met are generally a fun bunch. This image of carefreeness is most likely the reason I do things with much gusto when beer is involved. Or maybe it's just a bit of alcohol talking. 

A little beer in cooking does no harm. It's like adding coke into chicken. I'm infusing it into a pork belly dish here. It was so yum that I'm itching to cook this again, but as they say, you can't have too much of a good thing! It's a necessary evil to balance our meals out with healthier meat cuts. Pork belly is high in fat.

Beer-Braised Pork Belly

Although I like beer, I have never gone beyond a glass at any one time. I admit to being a lousy beer drinker, but I have always enjoyed things in small doses.

For this recipe, I went with Carlsberg - a light, pleasant beer. I didn't want it to overpower the dish, but to each her own is my take on this. Use any beer you like!

Beer-Braised Pork Belly
- 360g Pork Belly (sliced)
- 5 cloves garlic (pounded)
- ½ tbsp dark soy (thick, sweetish variety)
- 1 tbsp jaggery powder
- ⅛ tsp salt (preferably to taste)
- ½ cup beer (Carlberg)
- ½ cup water
- 2 tbsp cooking oil
- 1 to 2 red bird's eye chilli (thinly sliced)
and some spring onions (sliced) for garnishing

How-to:
1) Mix pork belly with jaggery and dark soy. Leave aside.
2) Heat oil in pan. Pan-fry the pork pieces for a couple of minutes.
3) Add the garlic. Fry it for a bit.
4) Then pour the beer in along with some water. Cook covered on low heat for about 15 minutes.
5) Remove the cover and cook on high heat until the sauce is reduced to a glaze. At this point, the pork belly is sweetish. Season with salt for a savoury oomph!
6) Give it a good stir. It's done. Serve garnished with chilli and spring onion.

Best eaten fresh out of the pan, with rice or on its own. It's great with congee too.

1) The Ingredients 2) Add jaggery powder and dark soy onto the pork
3) Mix well and leave aside 4) Pan-fry the pork pieces before adding the garlic
5) Finally, pour the beer in!

Beer-Braised Pork Belly garnished with Bird's Eye Chilli and Spring Onion