Cured Pork Belly Recipe (Cantonese Lap Yok)

"秋风起，吃腊味" is a Cantonese saying, means when autumn winds, eat cured meat. Autumn is the best season to make lap yok because the weather is perfect. I live in FL, USA. The autumn here is still too hot to hang the meat outside. So I am actually showing you the oven method. My family has used this recipe for decades. It is so delicious.

INGREDIENTS
4 kg of pork belly slap
1 cup + 1/4 cup (270 gram) of sugar
1/4 cup of rose cooking wine optional
1.5 cup (300 grams) of high alcohol content liquor (at least 35% ACL/VOL)

INGREDIENTS
In a sauce bowl, thoroughly combine the following ingredients: salt, sugar, soy sauce, dark soy sauce, Sichuan peppercorn (optional), and rose cooking wine (optional). Set it aside
Slice the pork belly slap into 1.5-inch wide strips. The difference between Chinese bacon and western bacon is that we do a dehydration process. You could use a leaner cut but it will get tough and chewy as the moisture evaporates. The striation layers on the pork belly ensure the meat stays juicy.
Toss the pork belly with 1.5 cups (300 grams) of high alcohol content liquor thoroughly. Although most of the alcohol will evaporate during the fermentation, a small amount will react with the fatty acids and create esterification, which forms esters. That gives lots of flavor to the cured meat. If you skip the alcohol for religious reasons, the final flavor will be different but it will still taste delicious.
Transfer it to a different container and leave the excess alcohol behind. Marinade the pork with the sauce for 36 hours. Come back every 12 hours and give it another toss to ensure an even marinade.
36 hours later, poke on each pork strips by using a knife then tie them with kitchen twines.
Hang all the pork strips onto the oven rack and slide the rack into the oven. Place a big tray under and line it with tin foil to catch the drips. If your oven is not big enough to hang the meat, place the pork on the rack or cut your pork shorter instead.
Use the lowest temperature in your oven and dehydrate the pork for 15-30 hours or until the pork lost 30% of the weight. The temperature should be between 120-150 F (48-65C). If your oven's minimum temperature can not go down to that low, use something to prop the oven door and keep it slightly open so the inner temperature is lower.
When it is done, the pork texture is firm. The color is brown and shiny. It will become much shorter and you will see a lot of oil dripped down to the baking tray.
Wrap the pork with paper towels and put it in the fridge for 4 weeks to encourage fermentation. Do not wrap it with plastic bags. It needs to be uncovered or else it will trap moisture, and that causes spoilage.
After 4 weeks, put the pork in Ziploc bags or seal it in the vacuum bags and freeze it for future use. It will stay good for 8-12 months.
The most simple way to enjoy Lap Yok is to steam it then slice it into thin slices. Serve as a side dish. You can use Lap Yok to make a lot of traditional Chinese recipes, such as Clay pot Rice, Taro Root Cake, Cantonese turnip cake, XO Sauce, Cantonese fried rice.

[SoupedUpRecipes]

The most simple way to enjoy Lap Yok is to steam it then slice it into thin slices. Serve as a side dish. You can use Lap Yok to make a lot of traditional Chinese recipes, such as

[liceous]

I love that she sponsors her own videos. Power move

[lailinglee]

I used your recipe made lap yok with 10 lbs no skin pork belly. They turned out amazing tasty! My hubby said better than store bought. Thank you very much for your sharing and I will definitely try out more of your delicious menu!, 😋😋😋👍👍👍

[benzuckerman]

I love your recipes and I love watching you make them. I think that your husband is the luckiest man in the world.

[faithbarcelo]

Thank you so much this is amazing, I love all your recipes but especially the fermented/cured/aged ones!

[jafo]

I made a batch of lap yuk about 6 weeks ago with pork butt. After 10 days of fermentation, I took a piece of lap and cooked it for consumption because I couldn't wait any longer. The lap yuk was good but it lack a "certain" something. To make a long story short, let your lap yuk go through the fermentation of at least 4 weeks as Mandy had prescribed, I have notice that the texture, the color as well as the fragrance when cooked is much more superior than the 10 day lap yuk I had cooked previously.

Mandy, thanks for your recipe. The lap yuk was most delicious, and I planned to make a big batch for gifts over the holiday!!!

[earlystrings]

Now that we have lap yok, you could do an update for clay pot rice!

[stanleysheppard]

Great tips for doing this at home in US. Thanks for sharing, will definitely try this recipe!

[mixtape]

My goodness, the time and effort you put into your videos is astonishing! Thank you!

[spicyspice]

Howdy, love your stuff. Lap yuk is in just about every Chinese grocery here in Australia but I cant wait to make my own.

[SuperSswartz]

Made it for the first time and it’s taste exactly how I remember it. Thank you!

[denxelsosa]

Thank you so much mandy You granted our wish!!!That is so much effort to do that but you still did that for us a good inspiration mandy That looks like bacon but it looks like in a healthier version Yummy❤️❤️❤️❤️😋😋😋

[lr]

Thanks for the thorough explanation of the process ❤❤👍👍👍👍

[iamafractal]

It makes a great deal of sense to use a curing chamber, where temperature and humidity can be controlled accurately. Luckily I have curing chambers so I’ll give this one a try! I do think I’ll add garlic and ginger though. I hope that’s traditional.

[dougchinn]

Fantastic recipe. Since it's winter and raining here, I'm going to wait till warmer weather to try the "hanging" method to dry the meat. My mom used to do this with Lop Oop, or preserve duck. You're right, the taste is amazing. Thank you for sharing your recipe.

[UncleBillsKitchen]

Awesome recipe Mandy. I love La Roe. In Taiwan, you can always see people hanging it and Ma Gan Chai to dry and cure. So delicious.

4 weeks of fermentation in the fridge, wow! You are really a master of your craft. Thank you for the inspiration.

Happy Cooking,
UB

[hu-thiuchan]

I do like your recypie. You speak clearly

[timothyelie]

This looks delicious thank you for sharing the recipe. I hope you are well.

[semco]

That sounds like a great recipe and the meat will be ready for the different dishes which calls for cured pork bacon. I have a package of bacon and could try making some of that and use it in a dish and see how it turns out. Thanks for sharing this recipe with us all and God Bless and Merry Christmas to you and your family.

[downriverjimdillac]

You are making my mouth water. Looks like a great way of curing bacon.