Braised Pork Belly and Baby Pig Intestines

I am utterly dissapointed with my internet service provider STREAMYX! Just as I was about to press SAVE and PUBLISH my post ... I lost all connectivity. What great timing! Anyway, here goes my post again ...... waste of precious time! It has been a while since I last had this succulent braised baby pig intestine dish. Cooked almost the same way as "Tau Yu Bak" (Braised Pork Belly in Soya Sauce) except for a longer list of ingredients which makes it a mouth-watering authentic dish for any special occassion. As for me, the occassion today is "EAT" for I have been very discipline with my food intake for the last 2 weeks consecutively. I was on my 'Steamboat Diet' together with my whole family. Oiless, Carboless and redmeatless.... I survived and feeling very much refresh and rejuvenated.

Ingredients A 400 gm pork belly (the leaner part with skin, blanche in boiling water) 2-3 bunches of baby pig intestines (blanche in boiling water) 4 hard boiled eggs (shelled) 1 can of abalone (sliced thinly and retain juice in can for stock) 6 dried chinese mushrooms (wash and soak in hot water for 10 minutes, retain water) 100 ml hot water sea salt to taste 1 cup brandy (approx. 150 ml) Ingredients B grapeseed oil 2 star anise 5 cloves 3 cloves garlic (smashed with skin) 1 cinnamon stick 8 black peppercorns (crushed slightly) 1 large dried oyster (rinsed throughly and chopped finely) 4 Tbsp scallop sauce or oyster sauce Dark soya sauce Light soya sauce

Heat oil in wok and put in all of the Ingredient B, mushrooms and pork belly. Flip pork belly until seared then add mushroom water and bring to simmer for 10 minutes. Then add hot water and simmer for another 20 minutes. Pour in the abalone juice and put in the intestines (whole bunches) and eggs, simmer for another 15 minutes. Sea salt to taste. Leave to sit in the gravy for 1/2 a day and just heat up before serving.

For a thicker gravy-like braise, thicken with a tsp of cornflour dissolved in filtered water. Pour in, stir and heat up before serving.

To serve, slice pork belly into bite size pieces, trim intestine into smaller bunches, pour in brandy and garnish with sliced abalone.