Nearly every Tujia family raises pigs for the Lunar New Year. Leftover pork is made into cured meat, which is easy to preserve and develops an appealing color. When cooked, it releases an inviting aroma that whets the appetite, and it is always a main course to entertain guests.
Cooking Process
Cut pork into chunks of 1.5 to 2.5 kilograms or larger to absorb seasonings well and facilitate storage.
Stir-fry salt until golden, add Chinese prickly ash to bring out the fragrance, then set aside.
Rub the pork thoroughly with warm seasoned salt and place the chunks in a basin. Arrange them alternately with skin facing down and up. Turn the meat every 3 to 5 days. After 10 days, drain excess water and hang the pork in a smoking room.
Smoke the meat slowly over pine and cypress branches mixed with walnut shells, peanut shells and orange peels. After around one month, the meat will turn reddish-brown and be ready.
Properly smoked cured pork can be stored in well-ventilated places for two to three years without spoilage. It has a golden-brown appearance, firm texture and rich smoky flavor.
Ways to eat
First, scorch the skin over an open fire, soak it in warm water to soften, then scrape and clean thoroughly. Different cuts have distinct cooking methods: pork ribs and trotters are commonly stewed or used for hot pot. Other parts are stir-fried or steamed with fermented chili paste, garlic sprouts, wild vegetables or millet. Famous dishes include millet steamed cured pork, cured pork with fermented chili paste, sweet preserved pork, fern root cake with cured pork and cured trotter hot pot
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