White Radish Pork Rib Soup 白萝卜排骨汤 (budgetpantry.com)
Makes 3-4 servings

What you need:
500g pork ribs (I like to use soft bone)
300g white radish (daikon), cut into small chunks
1 Pearl corn or sweet corn, cut into chunks
1 honey date
1 whole bulb garlic, smashed, skin on
1 can braised peanuts
Salt or mushroom powder to taste
Handful of cilantro

Steps:

Prep the pork ribs: Blanch ribs in boiling water, then rinse under the tap to remove gunk.

In your slow cooker, combine all ingredients along with 3.5 litres water. Cook on auto shift for 5-6 hours. Add the braised peanuts. Add salt or mushroom powder to taste. Top with cilantro before serving.

Milky pork bone broth (or stock) for your baby (budgetpantry.com)
Serves 3-4

What you need:

500g pork ribs with some fat (I used baby spare ribs / xiao pai gu)
400g chicken bones (optional – ok to skip – or you could just use 500ml chicken stock)
1 carrot
1 large potato
2 stalks celery
8-10 cloves garlic
1 yellow onion
2 honey dates
Water to just about cover all the ingredients and more for topping up
Salt to taste (optional)

Steps:

Blanch the pork ribs and chicken bones in boiling water for five minutes and rinse under running water to get rid of gunk.

Chop the carrot, potato, celery, and onion into chunks. Rinse honey dates.

Place all the ingredients in a large pot, fill with water until the water just about covers all the ingredients. Bring to a rolling boil for 10 minutes, then turn down the heat to a small simmer. Cook with lid on, leaving a small opening. Simmer for 3-4 hours and check periodically to top up with chicken stock (if using) or water. When done, remove the chicken bones if you have used them. Add salt to taste if desired.

For a wholesome meal, add tomato, spinach, broccoli or other greens 4-5 minutes before serving. You can have this with different pastas, noodles or rice. Freeze excess in an airtight container.

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Donburi: Buta Don (Pork Bowl) (budgetpantry.com)
Serves 2

What you need:

200g pork belly shabu shabu, cut each strip into half
2 eggs, beaten (I use egg story pasteurised egg esp when serving them runny)
1 medium yellow onion, sliced
1 tablespoon chopped spring onions
2 tablespoons oil
2 portions cooked rice

Mix together:
1 tablespoon soy sauce (I use hand flower brand)
1 tablespoon mirin
1 tablespoon sake
2 flat teaspoons sugar
2 tablespoons water
(note: if you dont have mirin or sake, replace with 1.5 tablespoon hua diao wine)

Steps:

Heat up the oil and fry onions till fragrant and slightly soft, about 5 minutes.

Add the pork belly slices one by one and spread them out in the pan as you don’t want them to clump together. Fry for a few minutes till about 80% cooked.

Add the seasoning, mix well and simmer for a minute.

Add the beaten eggs and spring onions and cook for 30 seconds. Turn off the fire. Spoon on top of rice and serve immediately.

红烧狮子头 Braised Lion’s Head Meatballs (budgetpantry.com)
Makes 6 large meatballs

What you need:

500g minced pork (best if it’s 70% meat 30% fat)
200g fish paste (get from fishball section in supermarkets)
50g panko bread crumbs
2 tbsp light soy sauce
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp sesame oil
1 tsp cooking oil
1 tsp corn starch
5 slices ginger, cut into matchsticks
3-4 stalks spring onion, cut into 1-inch pieces including white part
200g napa cabbage, cut into 1-inch pieces
2 honey dates
3 tbsp Hua diao wine
500ml chicken stock (I use 2 tbsp concentrated chicken stock + water)
Dash of white pepper
Oil for frying

Steps:

Mix minced meat, half of the fish paste, panko, light sauce, sugar, sesame oil, oil and corn starch together. Shape into 6 large meat balls.

In an preheated airfryer, AF for 180C for 10 minutes until golden. If you don’t have an airfryer, panfry (use a deep pot/pan) in oil till golden, then drain and set aside.

In the same pot (or new pot if you airfried the meatballs), add some oil and fry ginger and spring onions till fragrant. Add the napa cabbage and mix everything well. Add hua tiao wine, chicken stock and honey dates. Bring to boil.

Once stock has boiled, add meatballs and simmer for 40 minutes till vegetables are soft. Spoon in remaining fishpaste and cook for 2-3 minutes. Add a dash of pepper. Enjoy!

卤肉饭 Taiwanese Lu Rou Fan in Slow Cooker (budgetpantry.com)
Serves 4-5

What you need:

500g pork belly, sliced into 0.5-1cm width
2cm ginger, sliced thinly
1 tablespoon chopped garlic
2 star anise
1 stick cinnamon
2 tablespoons dried shrimps, soaked, drained and chopped
2 tablespoons fried shallots in oil (I use this type or you can fry your own)
2 tablespoons rock sugar or caster sugar
1 tablespoon cooking oil
Sufficient water to just about cover your ingredients

Seasonings (mix together):
2 tablespoons hua diao wine
2 tablespoons dark soy sauce
2 tablespoons light soy sauce
Half teaspoon salt

Side dishes:
5 Hanjuku eggs (I swear by this recipe by Just One Cookbook!)
200g xiao bai cai, blanched

Steps:

If your slow cooker inner pot can be used directly over the stove top like mine (I use Takahi), do all the steps in the slow cooker. If not, you’ll need a sauce pan.

In your slow cooker pot or sauce pan, heat up the cooking oil and fry the ginger and dried shrimps for a few minutes till fragrant. Add in the pork belly, chopped garlic and fried shallots. Continue frying for 3-5 minutes.

Add in the seasonings and rock sugar, making sure that the meat is coated well. Add the star anise and cinnamon stick. (If using sauce pan, transfer all the contents to your slow cooker)

Fill the slow cooker with enough water to just about cover all the ingredients (about 0.5cm above the ingredients line is good). We don’t want a make a soup!

Cook on low for 7-8 hours or on high for 3-4 hours. Add in the eggs in the last 10 minutes. (p/s- you can cook this in your all-in-one pressure cooker or instant pot too. Follow all the steps and pressure cook for 25 minutes)

Spoon on top of rice and serve alongside blanched veggies. 加饭加饭再加饭!!