Tiger Bites Pig (Gua Bao)

Hakka Pork Belly

650g pork belly rashers, skin on

2 tbsp oil

1 tbsp dark soy sauce

2.5cm ginger cut into matchsticks

1 tbsp Sichuan peppercorns

1 tsp cornflour mixed with 1 tbsp water

Sauce

2 star anise

100ml veg stock

4 tbsp light soy sauce

1 tbsp Xiaoshing rice wine

2 tsp wine vinegar

Pickled Cucumbers

½ cucumber sliced lengthways and finely sliced

1 tbsp rice vinegar

1 tbsp Mirin

Pinch each of salt and brown sugar

The Burgers

5tbs roasted peanuts

2 tbsp

1 tbsp rice vinegar

4 frozen Mantou buns

Small handful chopped coriander

It’s Chinese New Year and this is a treat for the young man. Whilst there are a lot of ingredients, the end result is a sort of burger. He’ll appreciate that as much as the fact that it tastes like nothing he’s ever had before. A CD of Qin music will ensure your kitchen has an aura of calm throughout.

Bring a pan of water to the boil, and simmer the pork for 30 minutes. Dry thoroughly on kitchen paper.

Add all the sauce ingredients to a bowl and stir well.

Heat the oil in a wok until almost smoking and add the pork and dark soy. Cook for a minute or so on each side. Dark soy is aged longer and has a mellower flavour than light soy, which is saltier. Have an adventure in a Chinese supermarket, but take your boy with you - chances are you'll want to buy more than you can carry home on your own.

Place the pork on a heatproof plate that will fit inside a bamboo steamer. Put the wok back on the heat and add the Sichuan peppercorns and ginger and finally the sauce. When it boils, pour over the pork.  Place the steamer over a pan of boiling water and steam for 1 hour.

Remove the pork and cut into pieces. Reduce the sauce in a small saucepan, adding the cornflour. Pour over the pork pieces. This would be great as it is with rice and a green vegetable, but you have promised your boy burgers. So, on we go. You should have plenty left over anyway.

Put everything for the pickled cucumbers in a bowl and allow to marinate for half an hour. Crush the peanuts with a pestle & mortar and add the sugar.

  

Mantou buns come from the freezer in Chinese supermarkets. They are white, even when cooked, and are fluffy and slightly sweet. Get a bamboo steamer going over boiling water and steam for 15-20 mins, until warmed through.

Split the buns and place some pickled cucumber inside and top with a piece of pork belly and a drizzle of sauce.  Sprinkle on some crushed peanut and some coriander leaves.

It’s called Tiger Bites Pig as the split bun looks like a tiger’s jaws devouring the pork. He’ll like the name and he’ll love eating it. This isn’t exactly healthy but at least you know what has gone into it. And it’s nice to celebrate Chinese New Year with a dish he has definitely never had before. The fact that he loves it enough that he tells you he loves it is a clear bonus. Even if he doesn't say it,those big brown eyes will tell you all you need to know,