Sichuan and Chongqing-style Braised Pork Knuckle with Sticky Rice and Tiger Skin (Two Flavors)

This braised pork knuckle with tiger skin is truly impressive—it's the star dish of any large banquet, and in a restaurant, it's a high-end, impressive dish that holds its own. Placed on the table, its glossy, dark red skin wrinkles into beautiful "tiger skin" patterns, sprinkled with tempting scallions—just looking at it makes your mouth water! The meat falls off your chopsticks with a "plop," the skin tender and the meat succulent, not greasy at all—it's like a "gentle paradise" stuffed into your mouth. If you dip it in the light dipping sauce, it's a "refreshing and cleansing" version; the slightly spicy and sour sauce coats the meat, like a cool breeze on your tongue. If you drizzle it with the thick sauce, it's a "sweet and passionate" version; the rich sauce clings to the meat, every bite is a savory blend of soy sauce and meat, like a "sweet embrace" for your taste buds. If you master this skill, serving it to guests at home will guarantee you'll be surrounded by people praising it until you blush! 😂 Which flavor do you prefer?

Ingredients

Steps

Scorching and cleaning the skin. Scorch the pork knuckle skin until it is golden brown. This will remove the fishy smell and dirt from the pork skin. After that, soak it in warm water to soften it, and then use a knife to scrape off the charred parts.
Blanching to remove the odor. Put the pork hock in a pot of cold water, add cooking wine, scallion segments, Sichuan peppercorns, and ginger slices. Once the water boils, skim off the foam and cook for another 30 minutes. Take it out and rinse it clean. This step is to further remove the fishy smell and make the pork hock cleaner.
Prepare the coloring sauce. Use 1 tablespoon of sweet rice wine sauce (the juice of fermented rice) + 1 tablespoon of dark soy sauce (if you don't have sweet rice wine sauce, use honey + light soy sauce + dark soy sauce + cooking wine) - this will make the pork knuckle more beautifully colored and give it a light sweet aroma.
Piercing the skin and applying the sauce. Use kitchen paper to absorb the moisture from the pork knuckle. Use a fork to prick the skin firmly (to help it absorb the flavor and fry until it develops a tiger-skin pattern). Then use a brush to apply the coloring sauce several times to make the color more even.
Prepare spices. Slice some ginger, and prepare star anise, bay leaves, Sichuan peppercorns, fennel seeds, cinnamon, and rock sugar. If you can handle spice, add dried chili peppers—these spices are key to enhancing the flavor of the pork knuckle.
Sautéing the ingredients and making the broth. Heat a wok with cold oil over low heat. First, sauté ginger slices until fragrant, then add rock sugar and stir-fry until caramelized. Add Pixian chili bean paste and stir-fry until the oil turns red. Next, add other spices and stir-fry. Add enough hot water to cover the pork hock, and add about 1 tablespoon of salt (taste it; the broth should be slightly salty). Bring to a boil and then remove from heat. Sautéing the sugar and chili bean paste is to make the broth red and glossy, and the spices make the flavor richer.
Frying to get tiger skin. Pour plenty of oil into a pot and heat it to 50% of its maximum temperature. Put the dried pork knuckle into the oil and fry until the skin is golden brown (be careful not to get splashed by the oil; you can use a lid to protect it), about 10 minutes. The fried skin will wrinkle when heated, which is the origin of the name "tiger skin".
Soaking in the sauce to wrinkle the skin. Put the fried pork knuckle into the sauce you just cooked and soak it for 30 minutes. The skin will wrinkle into a tiger skin shape and absorb the flavor of the sauce.
Steam until tender and soft. Add enough water to a pot, place the pork knuckle inside, and steam over the water. After the water boils, reduce the heat and steam for 3 hours—slow steaming makes the pork knuckle tender, flavorful, and not dry. The eight famous Sichuan and Chongqing dishes must be steamed, and slow steaming is key to the flavor. If you really insist on using a pressure cooker 😂, start timing from the time the pressure is released and cook for 45 minutes. Don't throw away the broth from steaming the pork knuckle; it's the essence! Use this broth to cook noodles, and the umami flavor will be overwhelming. Every noodle will be coated with the meaty aroma, making each slurp incredibly satisfying. It's also amazing for making rice porridge; the rice absorbs the rich broth, becoming savory and flavorful with a hint of meaty freshness, not oily or greasy, just right. Whether you're mixing it with noodles or making rice porridge, it's simple to make and incredibly delicious, better than any other seasoning.
Prepare the dipping sauce and enjoy! 1. I like the refreshing and light version: Put minced garlic and chili powder in a bowl, then pour hot oil over them to release their aroma. Add 3 tablespoons of soy sauce, 2 tablespoons of aged vinegar, a few drops of sesame oil, 1 teaspoon of salt, 1 teaspoon of sugar, a little chicken essence, and 1 tablespoon of oyster sauce. Sprinkle with chopped green onions and toasted sesame seeds.
2. Ginger and Vinegar Sauce (for 1 pork knuckle) Ingredients: 1 tablespoon Pixian chili bean paste, 10g minced ginger, 8g minced garlic, 0.5 tablespoon oyster sauce, a pinch of salt, a pinch of sugar, 1 tablespoon light soy sauce, 150ml water, 3g cornstarch + 10ml water (cornstarch slurry), 0.5 tablespoon aged vinegar, chopped green onions as needed. Instructions (low heat): Heat oil in a wok, add minced ginger and garlic and sauté until fragrant. Add chili bean paste and stir-fry until the oil turns red. Add seasonings and mix well. Add water and bring to a boil. Thicken with a light cornstarch slurry. Add vinegar and pour over the pork knuckle. Sprinkle with chopped green onions.