·5/19/2026
from
# Fried Pork with Spiral Chili
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**Ingredients**
- Lean pork shoulder or collar butt, thinly sliced
- Pork belly, thinly sliced
- Pure pork fat, sliced
- Spiral green chili peppers (螺丝椒), cut into large segments
- White wood ear mushrooms (白木耳), soaked and pulled apart
- Garlic, sliced
- Light soy sauce + dark soy sauce
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Three cuts of pork. That's the first thing to understand. Lean shoulder for texture, belly for richness, pure fat to render the lard you'll cook everything else in. Use just one type and you're already missing the point.
Start with the fat. Cold wok, no oil. Let it render slowly until the pieces shrink and turn translucent gold, and the lard pools at the bottom. That fat is your cooking medium for everything that follows.
Marinate the lean pork briefly, then drop it into the hot lard. High heat, quick toss — pull it out at seven-tenths done. It finishes later. Overcook it now and it turns to rubber by the time the dish is plated.
Cut the spiral chilies into large chunks. In the remaining lard, press them flat against the wok over medium-high heat. Don't rush it. You're waiting for the skin to blister into leopard spots — green with dark patches, soft and fragrant inside, still holding their shape. This is the tiger-skin (虎皮) moment the dish is built around.
Add the soaked white wood ear mushrooms. They go in pale and ruffled, and the contrast against the blistered green chilies is part of the dish.
Return the pork. Add the garlic slices. Pour the soy sauce along the wok edge so it hits the hot iron before the food — that's where the smoky depth comes from. One last toss over high heat until everything is coated and glossy.
Served in a small iron pot over a low flame. It stays hot at the table. The chilies keep their bite.
---
**Ingredients**
- Lean pork shoulder or collar butt, thinly sliced
- Pork belly, thinly sliced
- Pure pork fat, sliced
- Spiral green chili peppers (螺丝椒), cut into large segments
- White wood ear mushrooms (白木耳), soaked and pulled apart
- Garlic, sliced
- Light soy sauce + dark soy sauce
---
Three cuts of pork. That's the first thing to understand. Lean shoulder for texture, belly for richness, pure fat to render the lard you'll cook everything else in. Use just one type and you're already missing the point.
Start with the fat. Cold wok, no oil. Let it render slowly until the pieces shrink and turn translucent gold, and the lard pools at the bottom. That fat is your cooking medium for everything that follows.
Marinate the lean pork briefly, then drop it into the hot lard. High heat, quick toss — pull it out at seven-tenths done. It finishes later. Overcook it now and it turns to rubber by the time the dish is plated.
Cut the spiral chilies into large chunks. In the remaining lard, press them flat against the wok over medium-high heat. Don't rush it. You're waiting for the skin to blister into leopard spots — green with dark patches, soft and fragrant inside, still holding their shape. This is the tiger-skin (虎皮) moment the dish is built around.
Add the soaked white wood ear mushrooms. They go in pale and ruffled, and the contrast against the blistered green chilies is part of the dish.
Return the pork. Add the garlic slices. Pour the soy sauce along the wok edge so it hits the hot iron before the food — that's where the smoky depth comes from. One last toss over high heat until everything is coated and glossy.
Served in a small iron pot over a low flame. It stays hot at the table. The chilies keep their bite.
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