Twice-Cooked Pork Cheese Toastie

Method

1. Bring a 18 cm pot of water to the boil on high heat, about 5 min. Add the pork belly slices one by one, stir with chopsticks and blanch for 1 min, until white with no pink left. Drain and pat thoroughly dry with kitchen paper. This is the 'first cooking' of twice-cooked pork.

   Add in this stepThinly sliced pork belly (3 mm; hotpot slices work) 160 g

   high heat

2. Heat the oil in a 24 cm pan and fry the pork on medium-high heat for 3 min, until the edges crisp and curl. Add the cabbage, cut into bite-sized pieces, and fry for 2 min more, until wilted and browned in places.

   Add in this stepNeutral oil 1 tspWhite cabbage 100 g

   medium-high heat

3. Turn the heat down to medium heat, add the chilli bean paste, sweet bean sauce and sugar and stir-fry for 45 sec, until the pork is glossy, then mix in the sliced spring onions. Any liquid left will make the bread soggy, so cook until almost dry, then spread on a plate to cool slightly.

   Add in this stepChilli bean paste (doubanjiang) 3 tspSweet bean sauce (tianmianjiang) 2 tspSugar ½ tspSpring onions 1

   medium heat

4. Butter one side of each slice of bread. Lay half the slices butter-side down and top with cheddar, then pork, then mozzarella, and close with the remaining slices, butter-side up. Cheese above and below glues the filling to the bread.

   Add in this stepThick-cut sandwich bread, slices 4Butter, softened 20 gCheddar (sliced or grated) 40 gGrated mozzarella 80 g

5. Heat a 26 cm pan (×2 means two batches) on medium-low heat, add the sandwiches and toast for 3 min, pressing down with a spatula. When golden, flip and toast for 2 min 30 sec more, until the cheese melts. Too high a heat burns the bread before the cheese melts, so keep it gentle.

   medium-low heat

6. Leave for 1 minute, then cut diagonally and serve. Cut it straight away and the cheese all runs out.