Five-Spice Pork Stew

STORY

A few days ago, we had leftover easter eggs, and I wanted to get rid of them. My roommate had boiled a whole bunch. Apparently there is a popular game that is played on Easter in Bulgaria which involves smashing Easter eggs, but we never got around to playing the game. We had a party with chocolate fondue instead.

What to do with all those leftover eggs? I thought. I could make egg salad, but I wanted to be a bit more adventurous. Then I found a recipe for, kai pa-loh in Quick & Easy Thai. Five-spice Pork Stew with Hard Boiled Eggs is based on a traditional Thai dish, and gosh, it’s full of flavor. I know it seems strange to Western tastes, but it’s good. If you like Thai, you should try it, and then you should write me and tell me how delicious it is.

The original recipe called for a boiling time that is a bit long if you have a tender cut of pork. So I’m adapting it. This recipe yields about two servings.

RECIPE

• Prep Time: 10 minutes
• Cook Time: 40 minutes
• Total Time: ~50 minutes

TOOLS

• chef knife
• 1 dutch oven or a 3-1/2-quart sauce pan
• 1 plate
• 1 wooden spoon or tongs
• 1 medium sized pot

INGREDIENTS

1 tbsp of vegetable oil
1 1/2 tbsp of chopped cilantro roots
1tbsp of chopped garlic
1 tbsp of five-spice powder (make your own if you are feeling adventurous)
1/2 tsp of fresh ground black pepper
1/2 lb of pork chops (remove meat from bone – and keep the bones), chopped into 2 inch pieces
3 hard-boiled eggs
2 cups of chicken broth
1 1/2 tbsp of dark soy sauce
2 tbsp of Demerara sugar or palm sugar
1 tbsp of chopped cilantro leaves
1/2 tsp of sea salt
1 handful of rice noodles

METHOD

1. Heat 1 tbsp of olive oil in a dutch oven or a 3-1/2-quart sauce pan.
2. When the oil is hot, add 1 1/2 tbsp of chopped cilantro roots and cook for about 1 minute.
3. Add 1 tbsp of five-spice powder and 1/2 tsp of fresh ground black pepper and cook for about 20 seconds.
4. Add chopped pork and pork bones to the mixture and cook pork until it is browned and tender.
5. Remove pork leaving the bones in the pot, and put the pork aside on a plate.
6. Add 3 hard boil eggs to the pot, and coat the eggs evenly, then add 2 cups of chicken broth, 1 1/2 tbsp of dark soy sauce, 2 tbsp of Demerara sugar or palm sugar and stir until combined.
7. Bring to a rapid boil and then lower to a simmer, occasionally turning the eggs to coat them. (About 25 minutes.)
8. When the stew has been cooking for 20 minutes, bring a pot of water to a boil, and pour rice noodles into the pot.
9. Cook rice noodles until tender then drain.
10. Remove bones from the stew and discard, then add the pork into the stew again. Cook for an additional 5 minutes.
11. Add cilantro and cut eggs in half, and serve over the rice noodles.

Photo Credit: Lance Madson