Roasted Pork Belly Buns
Normally “gua bao” is made with melt in your mouth fatty braised pork, with cilantro and crushed peanuts for traditional Taiwanese fare. That will probably be a recipe for another day. Instead, this is a simple roasted pork belly, spiced and done in the air fryer until the edges are crisp, on home made buns. The recipe for the buns is the same as for man tou, just in a different shape. You can make a lot and freeze, or you can use store bought ones and just reheat.
An oddity about this is that while Tian Mian Jiang is often called “sweet bean paste”, the actual condiment most often has no beans, and should be more accurately translated as sweet wheat paste. If you don’t like it spicy, julienned cucumbers is a great substitute.
Ingredients
- 6 gua bao buns, warm
- 12 three inch slices pork belly (two for each bun)
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
- 1 teaspoon soy sauce
- 1/4 teaspoon five spice powder
- 1 teaspoon shao xing wine (or rice wine/sake/sherry, if you don’t have)
- Tian Mian Jiang/sweet bean (wheat) paste
- Sliced jalapeno peppers or cucumbers
- Sliced scallions
- Combine sesame oil, soy sauce, five spice powder, shao xing wine, and salt and pepper in a bowl. Marinate the pork belly while you prepare the buns and slice the scallions and jalapenos/cucumbers.
- Fry in the air fryer at 375 degrees Fahrenheit for 15 minutes, or until crispy on the edges. Your time may vary if you use a conventional oven.
- Smear the warm buns with the sweet bean paste, add two slices pork belly, jalapeno, and scallions. Serve hot.