Pork Belly BBQ Noodles

I had so many delicious noodles in Hong Kong, and I've been doing my best to do justice to those spicy bowls back in America.  Some of my favorite noodle shops--Good Hope Noodle in Mong Kok, Mak's Noodles in Central, and Ho To Tai Noodle Shop in the New Territories--serve fried egg noodles with BBQ pork belly.  It's amazingly good.  So I took a stab at my own version.

Using some Chinese five spice, s&p, fresh tomatoes, vinegar, olive oil, soy sauce, and just a few tablespoons of some Texas-style sweet and tangy BBQ sauce (I said this was a take on the dishes I had!), I whipped up a sauce to accompany the noodles and pork belly.  You'll need a few hours to make the pork belly, but once it's done this dish is quick and easy.  And you can even cook up the pork belly the day before you're planning to make your noodles. 

Want some music to go with those Hong Kong noodles and pork belly?  Here's Siouxsie and the Banshees' "Hong Kong Garden."

Ingredients:
--pork belly 
--1 lb. Chinese egg noodles (I prefer the super skinny kind, and you can find them at an Asian grocery)
--1/2 tsp. Chinese five spice
--3 tbsp. soy sauce
--1 medium-sized tomato, pureed
--1 tsp. pomegranate vinegar (you could use a simple balsamic vinegar instead)
--2-3 tsp. olive oil
--2 tbsp. Texas-style BBQ sauce (feel free to make your own too, of course!)
--1 tsp. salt & pepper
--1-2 tsp. coarse sea salt

Preheat oven to 475 degrees F.

You're going to make the pork belly first, and you'll need to make it at least 3-4 hours before you plan to start on the noodles.  

Score the skin/fat of the pork belly with a very sharp knife, being careful not to cut into the meat.  Sprinkle the coarse sea salt over the skin and rub in, pushing the salt into the score marks.  Pour about 1 tsp. or so of the olive oil over the skin and rub in thoroughly.  

Place the pork belly on a roasting rack in a roasting pan, and place in the hot oven for 20 minutes, or just until the skin begins to bubble.  Turn the heat down to 325 degrees F and continue roasting for about 2.5 hours, or until the meat begins to easily pull apart.  Depending on the size of your pork belly, you'll need to keep an eye on it and adjust accordingly.  Once it's done, remove from the oven and allow it to rest, covered with foil, for at least 20 minutes.

Onto the main dish.  In a small bowl, combine the Chinese five spice, soy sauce, tomato, pomegranate vinegar, BBQ sauce, about 1 tsp. or so olive oil, and 1 tsp. s&p.  Whisk together to combine, then set aside.

In a medium-sized pot, boil your egg noodles for just about a minute and a half, then drain and rinse with cold water.  Set aside for just a few minutes while you get the pork belly ready.

When your pork belly has cooled, slice and chop into about 1/2" strips.  Over medium heat in a sauce pan, fry the pork belly to crisp it up, about 5 min.  Once it's sizzling, add the sauce mixture and continue to fry for another minute or two.  Add the egg noodles.  Cook for another minute or two as you mix the noodles with the pork belly and sauce, just until everything is crispy and ready to serve.  If you have more noodles than you can eat, this dish makes for some great leftovers.