Recipe: Shin Hye-won’s soy sauce-braised pork belly bowl

Soy sauce-braised pork belly bowl [SHIN HYE-WON]

 
Moms often skip meals while busy caring for their kids, but Shin Hye-won believes that moms who eat well raise their children well.
 
Drawing on her expertise from the Culinary Institute of America and her experience in hotel kitchens, Shin introduces a simple yet refined recipe featuring easily accessible ingredients, so even busy moms can make it.
 
"October feels relatively relaxed with more holidays. However, there’s one place you’ll find yourself returning to often during these breaks: the kitchen. I have a menu I recommend for those who want to prepare a refined meal with ease. If you're used to grilling pork belly, why not try this dish today?"
 

Ingredients for the soy sauce-braised pork belly bowl [SHIN HYE-WON]

 

 

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Shin Hye-won’s soy sauce-braised pork belly bowl 

 

 
Ingredients (2 people):  
300 grams of pork belly — 8 garlic cloves — 1 chive stalk — rice
For the sauce: 2 tablespoons of thick soy sauce — 1.5 tablespoons of oyster sauce — 2 tablespoons of water — 2 tablespoons oligosaccharide — 2 tablespoons mirin
 
Instructions
1. Whisk together all the sauce ingredients in a small bowl.

2. Cook the pork belly and sliced garlic in a pan. Once the pork belly is cooked, cut it into bite-sized pieces.
3. When the pork belly is cooked, remove the oil from the pan with a kitchen towel.
4. Pour the sauce into the pan and simmer slowly over a low heat for about five minutes until the sauce thickens.
5. Serve the rice in a bowl, place the braised pork belly on top and garnish with chopped chives.
 

Simmer the sauce slowly when cooking. [SHIN HYE-WON]

 
Pro tips from Shin Hye-won
 
“This dish is really easy, even for beginners, and the cooking time is very short — under 15 minutes. Although I used pork belly, chicken drumsticks are a great alternative for a chewier texture.
 
“Cook the pork belly over low heat so that the sauce can soak into the pork belly well. Add about 2 pinches of ginger powder for a slightly tangy finish.
 
“If you are cooking for adults, you can make more sauce and throw in some Cheongyang peppers or garlic stems to increase the spiciness and enhance the dish’s color.
 
“Depending on one’s preference, it’s also delicious to cook whole garlic with the pork belly or toss in some king oyster mushrooms.
 
“This recipe is perfect not just as a homemade meal but also for a picnic lunch box or a dinner for myself after work. If you’re wondering what to cook during the upcoming holidays, give this a try!"

BY WOO JI-WON [woo.jiwon@joongang.co.kr]