Cu hu dua xao ba chi is all about the sweet crunch of the coconut heart. The difficulty is how fast it browns, since cut pieces change color within minutes of sitting out. The sauce is mixed in advance and poured in two goes so the vegetables cook evenly.
Each piece goes into water with rice vinegar the moment it is cut, which keeps it white and crisp. The pork belly is seared until the edges catch before the garlic goes in, which leaves the finished dish less greasy.
This batch weighs about 652g, at roughly 250 calories per 100g.
Method
Soak 200g pork belly in lightly salted water for 15 minutes, rub it gently, then rinse 3 to 4 times, drain and cut into small bite sized pieces.
Marinate the pork with 1 teaspoon seasoning powder, 1/2 teaspoon black pepper and 1 teaspoon minced shallot for 5 to 10 minutes.
Cut 200g young coconut heart into long rectangles and drop them straight into water with a little rice vinegar to hold the white color and the crunch. Cut 50g carrot the same way.
Peel the onion and cut it into wedges. Wash the cilantro and Thai basil and chop them.
Mix the sauce: 1 teaspoon seasoning powder, 1/2 teaspoon MSG, 1/2 teaspoon kOBE Monk Fruit Blend, 1/2 teaspoon ground pepper, 3 tablespoons water and 1/2 tablespoon rice vinegar, stirred until dissolved.
Heat 2 tablespoons cooking oil in a pan and sear the marinated pork belly until the edges are golden and some of the fat has rendered out.
Add 1 teaspoon minced garlic and fry until fragrant, then add the coconut heart and carrot, stir fry quickly, pour in about two thirds of the sauce and toss.
Once the coconut heart and carrot are just tender, add the sliced horn chili and onion wedges, pour in the rest of the sauce and toss for 1 to 2 minutes.
Just before the heat goes off, add 1 teaspoon fish sauce with the Thai basil and cilantro, toss gently and turn off the heat.
Tips
Each piece of coconut heart goes into rice vinegar water as it is cut, which keeps it white and crisp.
Searing the pork first and only then frying the garlic gives more aroma and less grease.
Cut the carrot to the same size as the coconut heart, since mixed sizes cook unevenly.
Pouring the sauce in two goes flavors the vegetables evenly without drawing out water.
The Thai basil and cilantro go in as the heat goes off, with only a gentle toss.
Need kOBE Monk Fruit Blend?
The recipe above is sweetened with kOBE Monk Fruit Blend, measured 1:1 like sugar. See the product page or send us a message.