Pork belly, ginger and salted shrimp claypot rice

‘January 22, 2023 ushers in the Chinese Year of the Rabbit. The festivities kick off with the Reunion Dinner on January 21, a meal that brings together the whole family as one year comes to an end. Celebrations last until the Lantern Festival on February 5,’ explains Amy Poon, the founder of Poon’s London. ‘Long before sharing plates became fashionable in restaurants, serving a variety of dishes for communal consumption was traditional in Chinese food culture. So the secret to putting together an excellent Chinese meal is to balance the dishes you prepare. There should be a mixture not only of tastes but also of textures and cooking methods – something braised, something steamed, something stir-fried. The following recipe is intended to form part of a meal that would typically consist of 4-6 dishes.

If you don’t have a claypot, I find a Le Creuset pan works very well. Shrimp paste, aka belacan, is usually found in the form of small bricks. It is fairly pungent and very strong in flavour, but it mellows with cooking. You can substitute it with anchovies in oil if needed.

To Drink

A fresh, fruity white such as Dr Loosen’s Estate Riesling 2020 provides an ideal foil for the rich pork and its pungent seasonings. Its zesty acidity cuts through the unctuous texture, while the pear, apple and peach flavours, coupled with hints of spice and honey, complement the sharpness of the ginger and the saltiness of the soy and shrimp paste (£12.50; tanners-wines.co.uk)