Braised Pork with Carrots

Hi, everyone! I am Lila Thompson, an American food blogger who has lived in Los Angeles for 8 years and is completely addicted to Chinese home-cooked dishes. I have been doing food sharing for 5 years. I love to pick out fresh ingredients in the vegetable market and study all kinds of warm-hearted dishes that need to be cooked slowly and carefully at home. I especially have no resistance to braised meat dishes with thick oil and red sauce and soft glutinous taste. I am 168cm tall and weigh 54kg. I have golden brown shoulder curly hair, light gray green eyes and a few faint freckles on my fair skin. I prefer loose cotton and linen shirts with straight jeans in my daily wear. I wear old silver bracelets handed down from my grandmother all the year round. This is my most reassuring little companionship when cooking. My friends around me all describe me as a slow-moving and serious eater. I don't talk much when I'm not familiar with it, and I can't stop talking about delicious food. my pet phrase is "oh my god, it's so delicious". I treat people sincerely and carefully. the only minor problem is that I am too involved in studying recipes and often forget to reply to messages. My daily routine is to visit the Chinese and Western vegetable markets in Los Angeles, photograph the cooking process of the family, and polish the real and warm food copy. Last year, with an improved sweet and sour pork ribs, I won the runner-up in the Los Angeles Community Food Competition. This is also my proudest achievement in sharing the family food. I belong to the taste of meat-free and unhappy, but I pay special attention to the combination of meat and vegetables, especially the sweet and sweet taste of carrots. The only dietary taboo is not to eat coriander. When cooking, I always like to play old-school jazz, cut vegetables slowly, stew slowly, and enjoy the whole process of ordinary ingredients transforming into heart-warming and delicious food.

The first time I ate carrot braised pork was at my Chinese teacher Aunt Li's house. It was a cold and rainy Thanksgiving evening. The late autumn in Los Angeles was cool. As soon as I entered Aunt Li's house, I was covered by a rich and mellow meat fragrance, mixed with the faint sweet fragrance of vegetables, which instantly dispelled the cold all over my body. Aunt Li smiled and said that this is a warm-up dish passed down by her mother for the winter. The ingredients are ordinary but the most nourishing. At the moment when it was served, the red and oily meat was wrapped in thick sauce and matched with orange red and soft glutinous carrots. Just looking at it makes people have a big appetite. I took a piece with a tentative mood, and was amazed at the moment of entrance. The spiced pork was so soft and tender that it almost turned out on the tip of the tongue. The fat part was stewed thoroughly and not greasy. The lean meat sucked up the soup completely without firewood. The original plain carrot sucked up the fresh flavor of the gravy, which was sweet and salty, soft and tough, and warm from the throat to the bottom of my heart, the smell of steadiness and healing, I remember now. From that day on, carrot braised pork has become a permanent dish on my dining table. When I am depressed, when the weather turns cold, and when I miss the warmth, I will cook a big pot, look at the bubbling sauce in the casserole, smell the aroma of the room, and all the trivial troubles seem to be slowly stewed away.

The history of fireworks hidden in the family: the past and present of carrot braised pork

many people think that braised pork is an ordinary home-cooked dish, but they do not realize that this seemingly simple dish hides the dietary wisdom of China for more than 2000 years, and the matching of carrots and braised pork is a perfect coincidence of the collision of ingredients, with both historical details and homely warmth.

The embryonic form of braised pork can be traced back to the "cannon dolphin" in the pre-Qin period, which belongs to one of the "eight treasures" of the Zhou dynasty. the core method is to simmer slowly after baking in mud. this concept of "stewing with slow fire for a long time and blending five flavors" is in line with the core of braised pork cooking today. The detailed practice with real written records comes from the Qi Min Yao Shu written by Jia Sixie of the Northern Wei Dynasty, which has a history of more than 1500 years, and it is Su Dongpo, a great literary giant of the Northern Song Dynasty, who made braised pork thoroughly popular throughout the country and became a national delicacy. When he was demoted to Huangzhou, he devoted himself to the study of pork practices and wrote "Ode to Pork". The sentence "slow fire, little water, it is beautiful when the heat is sufficient", which is still the cooking bible of braised pork. The Dongpo pork he created has laid the core process of braised pork stewed slowly and tasty. In the Ming and Qing Dynasties, the brewing technology of soy sauce became more and more mature, and the practice of thick oil and red sauce was formally finalized. Braised pork also entered the homes of ordinary people from the table of literati and became a hard dish that every household can make.

Many people do not know that carrot is actually an authentic "foreign food". Its ancestor is a purple wild root crop in Afghanistan. It was domesticated and improved around the 10th century. It was introduced to China along the Silk Road in the 13th century. At first, people only used its seeds as spices, and then slowly discovered its edible value. The orange-red carrot tastes sweet and nutritious, and the greasy and mellow braised pork is a match made in heaven. It can not only neutralize the greasy feeling of the meat, but also improve its own flavor by gravy. It can also make the whole dish brighter in color and more balanced in nutrition. Over time, carrot braised pork has become the most popular improved version, which is more palatable and more nourishing than pure braised pork. In different regions of the country, this dish has different ways to eat: when hoarding vegetables in winter in the north, it will be stewed in a large pot at a time, which is suitable for hot eating and rice mixing. In the south of the Yangtze River, carrots will be cut into hob pieces and stewed with spiced pork into "silver ingot meat", implying that they will be served on the table at festivals. In some places, quail eggs will be added to make a happy, no matter what kind of practice, the core is that slow-stewed homely warmth.

The secret of zero failure: choose the right ingredients to control the temperature, and the novice can succeed at once.

As a food blogger who has stepped on countless cooking pits, I can say responsibly that the core of carrot braised pork is to do well. Choose the right ingredients, stir-fry the sugar color, and simmer in place., no complicated skills, all details of dry goods, according to do absolutely not overturn, I share all my experience of repeated tests, each step is marked with key points.

The golden rule of food selection (to avoid pits)

the ingredients of this dish are very simple, and good ingredients are half the battle, especially pork belly. If you don't choose it correctly, the taste is ten times worse. I have sorted out the super-practical selection skills, and the novice will buy it according to the right:

• minced pork: be sure to choose fine five flowers with skin, fat and thin, preferably three layers of fat and two layers of thin, the meat is bright red and tight, the skin is complete and undamaged, remember not to choose too thin or too fat, too thin and too fat, too fat and too greasy, with skin is the soul, QQ plays after stewing soft, full of gum.
• Carrot: Select the same size, orange and red color, bright, heavy hand feeling, smooth surface without cracks, do not choose the one with too large and hollow head, hard core and poor taste. The local fresh carrot with soil has the strongest taste, full sweet feeling and the best greasy effect.
• Flavoring materials: yellow crystal sugar is preferred, which is brighter and more mellow than white sugar. spices only need star anise, cinnamon, geraniac, ginger slices and scallion segments, and do not need to be added too much, otherwise it will cover up the fragrance of the meat itself. I usually only put one star anise and a small piece of cinnamon to improve the fragrance and not rob the flavor.

Detailed cooking steps (with exclusive tips)

the first step: food pretreatment, which is the key to meat without firewood. Minced pork is cut into large pieces of 3cm square. It does not need to be cut too small. It will shrink when stewed. Put it in cold water and add two slices of ginger and a spoonful of cooking wine. After boiling over high fire, skim the floating foam on the surface. After taking it out, rinse it with warm water. Remember never to use cold water. Hot meat will shrink quickly when cold, and the taste will change into firewood directly. This step must be remembered. Peel carrots and cut them into hob pieces. The hob pieces are both good-looking and easy to taste. Slice ginger and tie onions for later use.

Step 2: Stir-fry sugar color, which determines the core of the color value and taste of the dish. Put a little edible oil in the pan, the spiced pork itself will produce oil, do not need to put more oil, add crushed yellow crystal sugar, turn on a small fire and stir-fry slowly until the crystal sugar completely melts and turns into bright amber color, immediately turn off the fire and pour the scalded spiced pork, quickly stir-fry so that each piece of meat is evenly coated with sugar color, at this time you will hear the sound of zi la, the meat fragrance instantly eruption, the whole small fire is bitter color stir-fry color, novices must be patient and slow to fry.

Step 3: Stew slowly and wait patiently for the good taste. Fry the sugar-wrapped spiced pork until the surface is slightly yellow, add ginger slices, scallion and spices, stir-fry to produce fragrance, then pour in two tablespoons of raw soy sauce to improve freshness, one tablespoon of old soy sauce to color, and two tablespoons of cooking wine to remove fishy smell, stir-fry evenly to fully absorb the seasoning taste. Then pour in enough hot water, the water must not cover all the ingredients, the whole process of using hot water is the second secret of meat without firewood, turn to the minimum fire after the fire is boiled, cover the pot and simmer for 30 minutes, wait until the pork belly stew to the extent that chopsticks can be easily inserted, then add carrot pieces, continue to simmer for 20-25 minutes, remember that carrots cannot be put early, otherwise they will be stewed into mud later and taste.

The fourth step: the fire juice, lock all fresh incense. Finally, add a little salt to taste according to your personal taste, turn on the fire to quickly collect the juice, stir-fry continuously to prevent the sauce from being pasted until the sauce becomes thick and translucent, and can be firmly hung on the meat and carrots, then you can turn off the fire and come out of the pot. The red and oily color makes your mouth water just by looking at it.

Full analysis of taste level

the prepared carrot braised pork has a super rich taste: the skin is full of collagen and soft and glutinous when bitten. The fat meat is stewed thoroughly, melted in the mouth, and is not greasy at all. Lean meat is full of thick sauce, tender and juicy, without any firewood feeling. Carrots are the finishing touch of the whole dish. The outer layer is covered with gravy and salty, while the inner layer retains its sweet, soft and not rotten, paired with pork belly, one mouthful of meat and one mouthful of carrot, fragrant but not greasy, fresh and sweet, whether with white rice, steamed bread or noodles, people can eat an extra bowl.

Why do I highly recommend this home-cooked hard dish?

As a food blogger over the years, I have shared countless Chinese and Western delicacies, but carrot braised pork is always the most cured one in my heart. It is not only a dish, but also the warm taste of hidden pyrotechnic gas. Whether it is eating by myself, eating by family or entertaining friends, it is perfect.

From an emotional point of view, this dish has a special meaning to me. From the first meeting of Aunt Li's family, to the repeated exploration and re-carving by myself, every time I stew, I can think of the warmth of a foreign land. Last winter, I had a bad cold and was cold and had no appetite. I only wanted to eat this dish. I waited by the casserole and waited for it to stew slowly. One bite of hot meat and one bite of carrot spread all over my body instantly. All my fatigue and discomfort were relieved a lot. It has no exquisite plate, no expensive ingredients, but it can give people the most practical comfort in ordinary days. This is the most moving place of home cooking.

From the nutritional collocation, this dish is completely delicious and healthy. After a long time of slow stewing, most of the oil has been separated out and there is no burden to eat, while carrots are rich in β-carotene, which is easier to be absorbed by the human body after cooking with oil, which is very helpful for eye protection and nutrition supplement. With a balanced combination of meat and vegetables, the elderly and children can eat at ease. It is not as greasy as pure meat dishes, nor as light as vegetarian dishes, and has strong palatability.

In terms of practicality, it is a well-established universal home-cooked hard dish. During the family dinner, a pot of red and festive carrot braised pork is served, which is suitable for all ages and is definitely table C. When friends get together, stew it in advance, and it can be served after heating, which saves time and effort and is amazing. When one person eats, a large pot of stew can be eaten for two to three days. After heating overnight, the taste is stronger and the soup is even more unique. Compared with pure braised pork, the carrot-added version is more refreshing and greasy. Compared with other braised dishes, it is simple in practice and common in seasoning. Beginners can get started with zero threshold and the fault tolerance rate is extremely high.

Walking Heart Sentiment and Interactive Invitation

the longer I study food, the more I understand a truth: the best taste, never in high-end restaurants, but hidden in slow-simmering home-cooked dishes. Just like this carrot braised pork, there is no complicated craft, no rare ingredients, with patience and heart, you can turn the most common pork belly and carrots into delicious food that heals people's hearts. It teaches me that good taste needs to wait, and the beauty of life is also, impatience, slow precipitation, and self-recovery.

Finally, I 'd like to share with you some of my tips: adding a small spoonful of white vinegar to stew meat can make the pork belly soft and rotten faster and taste more tender. Add a few small crystal sugar before the juice is collected to make the sauce brighter and sweeter. If you like the slightly spicy taste, you can add two dried chili peppers, which have a different flavor. You can fine-tune it according to your own taste and make your own homely taste.

I especially want to ask everyone, what is the most unforgettable home cooking in your memory? Is it the meat stewed by my mother or the vegetarian dishes made by my grandmother? Is there any dish that hides your exclusive warm memories? Welcome to share with me in the comment area. I also hope that everyone will try to relive this carrot braised pork. Believe me, when you smell the aroma of the house and see the satisfaction of your family, you will understand that the food made with heart is always the most powerful.

I hope everyone can eat warm food and be surrounded by fireworks in ordinary days. We will share good food next time and remember to eat well!