Updated post on 23-1-2017

Upload of new pictures and add a bit more dark soya sauce.

This is a famous dish of Guangxi (广西）or Hakka (客家）。Until now, there is no fixed and clear rule as to which cuisine should it belong to. Possibly since a lot of Hakka originate from the Guangdong （广东） which has a common boarder with Guangxi, there is no clear line of classification.

Be it Guangxi cuisine or Hakka cuisine, the method and ingredients of preparation is almost the same. While in Hakka, it is called yam braised meat (芋头扣肉） but in Guangxi, the more popular name is 荔浦扣肉 which is also translated to lipu braised meat. You may be wondering what is 荔浦 （lipu)? It is the name of the yam that is famous in the province of Guangxi.

This is not an authentic recipe. This is a cut short recipe specially designed for busy house chefs. It is also no fun to pan fried roast pork skin which is the traditional recipes’ requirements. When the skin is pan fried with oil, it will “explode” as the “latex” liked skin will trap some hot air and explode in the hot oil. Therefore, for those who need conveniences, you can always try this short cut method using store bought roast pork or sio bak (烧肉） or  left over homemade roast pork.

I will not insist that you use store bought roast pork, you can still use the authentic way of preparation the pork as in this recipe: Hakka Mei Cai Stewed Pork Belly (客家梅菜扣肉）. The method of treating the meat is exactly the same and I have detailed the steps in the above recipe.

If you are not keen or have no confidence to deep fry the pork skin, and you do not want to buy from the stores, you can always prepare your roast pork at home using oven where there are no such worry of “exploding”. In this case, you can refer to the roast pork recipe in this pork : Crispy Roast Pork Or Sio Bak (脆皮烧肉）. After you home prepared the roast pork, you can cut into pieces and continue with this recipe.

I am happy with the taste and texture with this adventure. The only thing that I am dissatisfied is the colour of the dish. It is a bit lighter than desired and the red fermented bean curd gave a unique colour combination that I do not like. More dark soya sauce should have been added and I have adjusted the recipe for the amount of dark soya sauce to be added. Alternatively, you can marinate the meat with dark soya sauce first.

荔浦芋扣肉是广西荔浦及桂北地区的汉族传统名菜，此菜肉质细腻，熟后松软芳香，具有特殊风味，营养丰富，含有粗蛋白、淀粉和一定的无机盐、维生素，具有补气益肾、健脾胃之功效，是制作饮食点心、佳肴的上乘原料。用荔浦芋和五花猪肉做成扣肉，历来成为逢年过节家宴或红白喜事和宾馆酒楼席上的一道名菜。（http://baike.baidu.com/view/50162.htm）

WHAT IS REQUIRED

Servings: 4-6 adults

• 6 pieces of roast pork of 1 cm x 10 cm x 6 cm (Estimated about 500 grams)
• 6 pieces of yam of 1 cm x 10 cm x 6 cm (Estimated about 500 grams)

Sauces

• 1 tablespoon of ginger garlic paste
• 2 cubes of red fermented bean curd plus 1 tablespoon of red fermented bean curd sauce
• 4 tablespoons of Shaoxing or other cooking wine
• 2-3 tablespoons of dark soya sauce
• 1 tablespoon of white sugar
• 1 teaspoon of five spice powder

Others

• 1 tablespoon of corn starch mixed with 3 tablespoons of water.

* Note that the quantities are estimated and feel free to increase the quantity and size of the meat and yam. Note that this recipe fit into 10cm x 18cm x7 cm baking tin. Therefore, if you do not have such a tin for steaming, feel free to cut into your desired shape and size.

STEPS OF PREPARATION

• De-skinned the yam or taro, cut into size of about 1 cm x 10 cm x 6 cm. Deep fry the yam for about 1-2 minutes such that the exterior is cook.  Drain and set aside. The main purpose of this step is to ensure the yam will not disintegrate into small pieces after stewing for a long period of time. If you are not using my  specified baking tin, you can cut into your yam into any shape with 1 cm thickness.

• Use a blender to blend all the sauce ingredients until fine and set aside. If you do not have a blender, you can use a fork to mix all the ingredients and ensure that the fermented bean curds are mashed properly.

• Cut the roast pork into the same size as the yam or taro above. Set aside.

• Grease your steaming tin (10cm x 18cm x7 cm baking tin) or tray with cooking oil.

• Arrange the pork and yam into the tin by alternating a piece of pork with a piece of yam. Put the pork skin facing the bottom of the tin. Pour all the sauce on top of the meat and ensure that it is adequate to cover the meat and the yam. If the sauce are not adequate, you can add in water until it covers the meat and yam. Steamed at high heat for at least 35-40 minutes or until the meat have your desired texture.

• Once the meat is ready, invert the meat and yam carefully into your serving plate. Drain all the meat juices into a flying pan. Add the starch solution to the meat juices, bring the meat juices to boil and when the starch thickens, drizzle on top of the meat. The dish is ready to be served.

CONCLUSION

There is no need to follow exactly my presentation. What you need to do is to determine the your steaming bowl or tin to be used and cut the meat that can  fit into the bowls. You can then design the your very own presentation.  This recipe is not tough but what is needed is just a bit of patience. The recipe is full of flexibility and feel free to add more or less of a particular ingredient. If you have leftover roast pork, you can always consider to prepare this dish. Again, if you want to start from fresh pork, please refer from this recipe: Hakka Mei Cai Stewed Pork Belly (客家梅菜扣肉）.

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