Food & Wine USA - (12)December 2020

OBSESSIONS

34 DECEMBER 2020

Nqaj Qaab Zib (Sweet Pork)

TOTAL 1 HR 45 MIN; SERVES 4

Fragrant lemongrass and galangal add

brightness and balance to the savory-

sweet sauce that coats tender pork belly.

Searing the pork in batches ensures the

meat browns while the fat renders.

1 Tbsp. canola oil

2 lb. pork belly, cut into 1-inch pieces

12 hard-cooked quail eggs, peeled

1 / 4 cup sweet soy sauce (preferably

ABC), divided, plus more to taste

2 Tbsp. dark brown sugar, plus more

to taste

2 tsp. kosher salt

1 (2-oz.) lemongrass stalk, cut

crosswise into thirds

1 (2-inch) piece fresh galangal or

ginger, thinly sliced (about^1 / 3 cup)

Pinch of Chinese five spice

(optional)

Cooked white jasmine rice, for

serving

1. Heat oil in a medium Dutch oven over
   medium-high. Add half of the pork belly
   pieces; cook until lightly browned on 2
   sides, about 5 minutes per side. Transfer
   browned pork to a bowl. Drain and discard
   drippings. Repeat with remaining pork;
   drain and discard drippings. Stir together
   quail eggs and 2 tablespoons soy sauce in
   a small bowl; set aside.


2. Return browned pork to Dutch oven.
   Reduce heat to medium; add brown
   sugar, and cook, stirring constantly, until
   dissolved, about 10 seconds. Add salt and
   remaining 2 tablespoons soy sauce; cook,
   stirring often, until pork is glazed in sauce
   mixture and darkened, about 5 minutes.
   Drain drippings, holding pork against side
   of Dutch oven to keep in place while pour-
   ing. Discard drippings.


3. Add enough water to just cover pork in
   Dutch oven (about 4 cups); bring to a boil
   over high. Reduce heat to low; stir in lem-
   ongrass and galangal. Partially cover; sim-
   mer, stirring occasionally, until pork is
   tender, 1 hour to 1 hour and 15 minutes,
   stirring in egg mixture during final 5 min-
   utes of cook time and adding additional
   water to keep pork just covered in liquid.


4. Remove from heat. Remove and dis-
   card lemongrass and galangal, if desired.
   Let stand 5 minutes; skim and discard fat
   from surface. Stir in Chinese five spice, if
   using. Taste mixture; if desired, add addi-
   tional soy sauce or brown sugar to
   achieve desired savory-sweet balance.
   Serve with cooked rice; drizzle with sauce
   from Dutch oven. —LA VANG-HERR, @LA’S, A
   HMONG FOOD CART, ALOHA, OREGON
   WINE Ripely fruity red blend: 2018
   19 Crimes Red

In many

ways, the

cart is just

a starting

point for

Va n g - H e r r,

who hopes

that Hmong

food will be

just as well

known as

ai and

Vietnamese

food one day.

ginger and lemongrass. At first, Vang-Herr and her husband

attempted to make the sausages by hand, but they have since

entrusted a local butcher to make them using her recipe. Back

at the cart, Vang-Herr grills the sausages until they are charred

and snappy and serves them with the requisite sticky rice, plus

a fiery green chile hot sauce she calls “pepper dip.”

Although Steve is a field service engineer by day, the

pepper dip is his responsibility. Vang-Herr and her family

live on eight acres of land, some of which is dedicated

to crops used in Southeast Asian cooking, like cilantro,

mustard greens, and, of course, the peppers for their dip.

Setting up a farm is a return to the Hmong way of life,

for which farming is critical, says Vang-Herr, whose fam-

ily hails from northern Laos.

The couple also use some of their land to raise a brood

of chickens. Vang-Herr’s otherwise measured demeanor

becomes animated when she talks about her birds; the

majority are breeds from Southeast Asia, but her most

prized are a stunning blue-and-black type known as

Hmong chickens. “They are more or less an heirloom

now,” she explains. “When the Hmong people fled South-

east Asia and immigrated to this country, [chickens] were

one of the few things they took with them.” These chick-

ens are much leaner than American birds and are a trea-

sured connection for Vang-Herr to her lost homeland.

In many ways, the cart is just a starting point for Vang-Herr,

who hopes that Hmong food will be just as well known as Thai

and Vietnamese food one day. She has plans to transform the

farm into a business where people can come pick their own

Southeast Asian vegetables and learn to make dishes like Hmong

pickles. Throughout the farm, Vang-Herr is looking to build

traditional sun shelters, like the kind found in Laos, so that

visitors can immerse themselves in Hmong traditions. “I always

say to people that @La’s is not a food cart,” says Vang-Herr. “It’s

a way to preserve our culture and stay true to our history.”

Quail eggs and pork

belly star in Nqaj Qaab

Zib (Sweet Pork), a

beloved special at

@La’s in Aloha,

Oregon.