Hung-shao-ti-pang

The other night we had the cousins over for dinner and I made Hung-shao-ti-pang. It was very popular and they all asked for my recipe. For years I've used my own modified version of the Time-Life Cookbook recipe. I've adjusted it to include some of my Aunt's steps.
Chinese Red Cooked Pork (Hung Shao Ti Pang)
Ingredients:


• 10 dried Chinese mushrooms roughly 1 inch in diameter
• ¼ Cup Chinese rice wine or pale dry sherry
• 2 Cup cold water
• 4 ½ - 5 lb fresh pork picnic shoulder, rind left on, bone-in
• 2 tsp. grated fresh ginger
• 2 cloves of garlic minced
• ¼ cup chopped garlic chives or 2 scallions, including green top, cut into 3 inch lengths
• ½ Cup soy sauce – I use Kikkoman
• 2 tsp five spice powder
• 1 star anise (8 sections)
• 3 Tbs granulated sugar

Instructions: In a small bowl, cover the mushrooms with ½ cup of warm water and let soak for 30 minutes. Use a large bowl as the mushrooms expand as they absorb liquid. Drain. Cut off the tough stems of the mushrooms and slice caps into three strips.
Blanch the pork shoulder. Put the pork in a large heavy pot, just large enough to hold it tightly. Add enough cold water to cover it by 2 inches. Over high heat, bring the water to a boil. Turn down the heat and let it simmer for 1 hour. Then transfer the meat from the pot to a colander and run hot tap water over it. Discard the cooking water.

Slow cooker method - I cook the ti-pang in a slow cooker but it can be done on the stove (see instructions below for cooking on the stove). Place the meat in the slow cooker. Add the soy sauce, ginger, garlic, star anise, five spice, sugar, wine, chives (or scallions), and 2 cups of water. Turn cooker to high for 1 hour. (This next step is not done in the traditional ti-pang. The roast is kept whole and the meat is pulled off the bone with chopsticks or a fork when served.) Remove pork from the pot and let it cool enough to handle. Cut the meat off the bone carefully in as large a piece as possible keeping the skin, fat and meat together. Put the bone aside to use later for soup. Spread the meat out on a cutting board and cut into about 1 to 1 ½ inch pieces, keeping as much of the skin and fat attached to the meat as possible. There will be some pieces that are only meat. Transfer the meat back to the slow cooker pot and continue cooking on low for 2 hours turning the meat over in the pot every hour. Add the mushrooms and cook another 2 to 3 hours (total cook time 5 to 6 hours in a slow cooker). Skim off liquid fat before serving.

Alternate stove top method – Place the pork back in the pot. Add the soy sauce, ginger, garlic, star anise, five spice powder, sugar, wine, chives (or scallions), and 2 cups cold water. Bring to a boil and cover the pot. Reduce the heat to low and cook the meat for at least 3 hours, adjusting the heat to keep the liquid at a simmer and turning the meat over several times during the cooking period. Add the soaked mushrooms and cook 30 minutes longer. There should be about 1 cup of liquid left when the meat has finished cooking. If there is more, cook uncovered until the liquid is reduced. Skim off liquid fat before serving.
Increase or decrease the ingredients proportionately to the size of the pork picnic shoulder.

Serves 6 to 8 if served as main course.