Yao Meat (Zhenjiang Cured Pork)
A classic Huaiyang specialty made from pork knuckle cured with saltpeter and slow-cooked until translucent. Aromatic and tender without being greasy, it is traditionally served chilled as a cold appetizer.
Ingredients
Pork shank (deboned, trimmed, washed)
1 (4000 g)
Saltpeter (for curing)
6.5 g
Coarse salt (for curing)
65 g
Yao meat master broth (for cooking)
to taste
Instructions
1
Piercing and Curing Preparation
Pierce the deboned, trimmed, washed pork shank evenly with small holes all over the meat surface using fine wooden skewers.
2
Curing
Mix together 6.5 g saltpeter and 65 g coarse salt, rub onto the meat, then grab and knead the meat thoroughly back and forth so the saltpeter and salt penetrate into the interior through the small holes. After kneading, set aside to cure — about 3 days in winter, about 2 days in spring or autumn, about 1 day in summer. After curing, soak the meat in cold water for 2 hours, then use a knife to gently scrape off the saltpeter residue and impurities on the surface until the skin and flesh turn white, then stop.
3
Cooking
After scraping clean, place the meat in a pot, pour in the yao meat master broth, and start the fire. Before cooking, press the meat tight with a wooden board weighted down by stones, and at the same time clamp the pot lid tight so the meat does not loosen after cooking. The cooking time depends on the toughness of the meat — generally in winter cook to about 90% done for about 4 hours, in spring or autumn cook to about 80% done for about 3 hours, in summer cook to about 70% done for about 2.5 hours.
4
Cooling and Slicing
After cooking, remove the meat, rinse off the oil clinging to the meat with the broth, weigh it and place it in a porcelain basin, then skim the broth in the pot clear and pour it over the yao meat. Press the meat tight with a wooden board weighted down by stones, and slice once fully chilled.
