Slow-Cooked Pork with Star Anise & Bok Choy

• 1 kgpork shoulder, bone-in
• 1 tbsprice vinegar
• 1cinnamon stick
• 4 cmpiece fresh ginger, sliced
• 1 tbspgarlic-infused olive oil
• 3spring onions, green tops only, sliced
• 2 tbspmaple syrup
• 3star anise
• 4 tbsptamari
• 3heads bok choy, halved
• 1 tbspsesame seeds, toasted
• Fine salt and black pepper
• 300 gjasmine rice, rinsed (optional)

Method

1. 1Preheat the oven to 150°C/fan 130°C. Pat the pork dry and season generously with salt and pepper.
2. 2Sit the pork in a heavy casserole and add the star anise, cinnamon stick, tamari, maple syrup, 2 tsp rice vinegar and sliced ginger. Pour in enough water to come halfway up the pork, around 300 ml.
3. 3Cover tightly and braise for 3 hours, until the meat is yielding and pulls away from the bone with no resistance. You're looking for collagen-soft, not stringy; if a fork meets any springback, give it another 20 minutes.
4. 4Lift the pork out onto a board and rest loosely under foil. Strain the braising liquid into a saucepan, discarding the ginger and whole spices, skim the worst of the fat from the surface, then simmer hard for about 10 minutes until it reduces to a glossy, syrupy sauce that coats the back of a spoon. Taste it now; most of the salt comes from the tamari, but a final pinch and the reserved 1 tsp rice vinegar tie the sweet, salt and sour together.
5. 5Shred the pork roughly with two forks, keeping some chunkier pieces for texture, then toss through a few spoonfuls of the reduced sauce so it doesn't dry out.
6. 6If using the optional rice, cook it according to the packet instructions during the final 20 minutes of braising, then fluff with a fork.
7. 7Heat the garlic-infused oil in a frying pan over a medium-high heat. Lay the bok choy cut-side down in a single layer, don't crowd the pan or it will steam instead of sear, and cook for 2 minutes until the bases are golden. Add a splash of water, let it steam for a further 2 minutes until the stems are just tender and the leaves wilted, then season with a pinch of salt.
8. 8Divide the optional rice between bowls if using, then add the shredded pork and the seared bok choy alongside, spoon over the glossy reduced sauce, and finish with a scatter of spring onion tops and toasted sesame seeds. Taste a forkful.

Per serving

kcal

442

protein

34.4g

fibre

1.4g

carbs

9.6g

fat

30.5g