When I was traveling in China, I was told to visit a very special restaurant in Shanghai. They said this restaurant specialized in “revolutionary dishes“. The place was called Mao Jia Cai or Mao’s Family Restaurant.
They specialized in food from the Cultural Revolution, and in particular Mao’s favorite dish, red braised pork. It was incredible.
When I came home, I wanted to try to make it, so I went into my cooking library and found an amazing book by Fuchsia Dunlop called Revolutionary Chinese Cookbook, Recipes from Hunan Province. And so I adapted this recipe from there, and it was almost as good as what I had in China. 
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Ingredients:
- 1 lb. Pork Belly
- 2 tbsp. Peanut Oil
- 2 tbsp. White Sugar
- 1 tbsp. Shaoxing Wine
- ¾-inch piece fresh Ginger, skin left on and sliced
- 1 Star Anise
- 4 dried red Chiles
- Small piece Cassia bark or Cinnamon stick
- 1 tsp Light Soy Sauce
- Salt, to taste
- A few pieces Scallion Greens
- 2 Bay Leaves, optional.
Preparation:
Cut the pork belly into bite size chunks and put into a pan of boiling water and simmer for 2-3 minutes until partially cooked. Remove and set aside.
Heat the oil and sugar in a wok over a low flame until the sugar melts, then increase the heat and stir until the melted sugar turns a rich caramel brown. Add the pork and splash in the Shaoxing wine.
Add just enough water to cover the pork, along with the ginger, star anise, chiles, and cinnamon. Bring to a soft boil then turn down the heat and simmer for 40-50 minutes. It should look like this.
Turn up the heat to reduce the sauce until thick, and season with soy sauce, salt, and a little sugar to taste. Add the scallion greens just before serving.
This article is part of The Pasadena Chef Cooking School. Explore more cooking lessons, techniques, and ingredient guides here. The Pasadena Chef Cooking School
Red Braised Pork, Mao’s Favorite Dish
Ingredients
Equipment
Method
- Cut the pork belly into bite size chunks and put into a pan of boiling water and simmer for 2-3 minutes until partially cooked. Remove and set aside.
- Heat the oil and sugar in a wok over a low flame until the sugar melts, then increase the heat and stir until the melted sugar turns a rich caramel brown. Add the pork and splash in the Shaoxing wine.
- Add just enough water to cover the pork, along with the ginger, star anise, chiles, and cinnamon. Bring to a soft boil then turn down the heat and simmer for 40-50 minutes.
- Turn up the heat to reduce the sauce until thick, and season with soy sauce, salt, and a little sugar to taste. Add the scallion greens just before serving.