China · Chinese
Luoyang braised pork belly in broth
A closing course of the Luoyang water banquet: sliced pork belly coated in batter and fried to a golden shell, then steamed through and topped with a sour-hot broth fried with aromatics and dried chilli. Crisp outside, never dry. Public reference · home adaptation, not a historical original.
Public reference · Home adaptation Luoyang su rou is one of the four closing courses served before guests are seen off. Public reporting describes it as savoury, tender, refreshing and rich without grease, and on a soupy table it joins the fragrance of frying to the sour-hot broth, exactly the way the water banquet works. It is also a common dish in Luoyang homes around the New Year. Published menus record the name only; this version follows public recipe sources and is not a one-to-one match to that menu. **This entry previously also cited a Zhihu column page (zhuanlan.zhihu.com/p/492193137); in this pass Zhihu returned 403 to every non-browser client and the body could not be opened by either curl or web_fetch, so that source has been removed. The method here rests on the remaining openable sources listed above.****Adaptation and difference**: what separates Luoyang xiaosurou from other regional crispy pork is the final pour of broth; public material states plainly that Luoyang xiaosurou is steamed before it reaches the table, and that a separate pan of aromatics and dried chilli is fried, thickened with stock and vinegar, and poured over the steamed meat. That step is kept. Another public version simmers a 2-hour pork-rib stock, a prerequisite not counted in the cooking time; prepared stock is used here. The 3:1 flour-to-starch batter, frying and steaming times and seasoning amounts are editorial for four. The Daji/Suzhenji origin story is folklore and is treated as legend, not history. Tips about using beer for extra crispness and adding oil to stop splatter are anecdotal and were not adopted. Contains wheat (flour), egg, soy (light soy) and sesame; the stock is pork-bone based, so this is not a vegetarian dish. Watch the oil throughout frying and guard against splatter, and take care with steam. 搜狐（嘿嘿聊美食）：洛阳水席"小酥肉"的做法 — Luoyang xiaosurou is steamed and served with broth poured over, unlike other regional versions: pork belly cut into finger-thick batons; batter of salt, pepper, egg and cornstarch to flour at 3:1; fried 2 minutes at 60% oil temperature; steamed 10 minutes with star anise, peppercorn, scallion, ginger and water; a separate broth of fried aromatics, stock, vinegar, seasoning and sesame oil poured over. https://www.sohu.com/a/511816650_121287722 搜狐（奎哥论吃喝玩乐耍）：洛阳小酥肉吃起来香酥，嫩滑，爽口，肥而不腻 — Made by frying then steaming; the bowl is steamed about 30 minutes with star anise, peppercorn, scallion, ginger and a little water, then inverted onto a large bowl; a separate broth of fried aromatics and stock is poured over. The name is linked by legend to Su Daji. https://www.sohu.com/a/406205765_120704099 FDA: Food Allergies — Basis for declaring wheat (flour), egg, soy (light soy) and sesame allergens. https://www.fda.gov/food/food-labeling-nutrition/food-allergies AI-generated illustration; not kitchen-tested.
Ingredients
- pork belly, skin removed, cut into batons500 g
- cornstarch for the batter90 g
- plain wheat flour for the batter30 g
- egg1 piece
- cooking oil for frying600 ml
- salt4 g
- white pepper powder1 g
- star anise2 piece
- scallion, sections and chopped25 g
- ginger, sliced15 g
- dried chillies, cut into lengths5 g
- pork-bone stock500 ml
- vinegar25 ml
- light soy sauce15 ml
- sesame oil5 ml
Directions
- 1
Cut the pork belly into finger-thick batons, rinse and drain. Separately mix the cornstarch, flour, egg, 2 g salt and 1 g white pepper, adding water a little at a time until the batter pulls into threads.
- 2
Coat each baton evenly in the batter and rest 10 minutes so the batter absorbs moisture from the meat.
- 3
Heat oil to about 180°C, fry the coated pork 2 minutes until golden on both sides and drain. For eating straight away, raise the heat and fry a second time.
- 4
Transfer the fried pork to a deep bowl with the star anise, scallion, ginger, a little white pepper and 80 ml water, and steam 10 minutes over high heat. This step is what separates the Luoyang method from other crispy pork and should not be skipped.
- 5
In a separate pan heat a little oil and fry the chopped scallion, ginger and dried chillies until fragrant.
- 6
Pour in the stock, bring to a boil and season with vinegar, light soy, the remaining salt and white pepper. Simmer 2 minutes and drizzle in sesame oil.
- 7
Pour the broth over the steamed pork, scatter chopped scallion and serve hot. The shell is still crisp at this point; it softens once it cools.
Source: WorldBite · public-reference adaptation · Source-attributed editorial adaptation; AI illustration; not an authenticated original recipe.