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    Home » Feature Post » Best Taiwanese Minced Pork (rou zhao fan)

    Best Taiwanese Minced Pork (rou zhao fan)

    Published: Sep 8, 2019 · Modified: Nov 25, 2020 by Edwina · This post may contain affiliate links.

    Jump to Recipe Print Recipe

    Making Taiwanese minced pork sauce is probably the best way to use ground pork.  It's savory, slightly sweet, and very fragrant, plus there's endless options of using it.  My mom makes the best Taiwanese minced pork sauce, people who've tried it can never forget about it. 

    Not only does this go well with rice, but also with any kind of noodles or cooked veggies.  Sometimes I will mix it with some boiled green beans, top with blanched spinach or any kinds of leafy green, or make a quick and easy braised tofu with it.  As a busy mom, it's definitely a must-have in my fridge!

    When I was in college, my mom will make me a big batch of minced pork sauce separated in small Ziploc bags for me to store in the freezer.  With some minced pork sauce on hand, I can quickly put together a simple but super delicious meal by mixing it with noodles and veggies, topping it with a fried egg. 

    Every time when I heat up the sauce, my house mates will come out from the room and beg me to share some with them.  Even until today, they still sometimes mention how good that sauce is.

    After I came to the US, however, I could never make Taiwanese minced pork sauce that tasted the way my mom made it, even by following her instructions.  Thankfully, when my mom visited me few months ago, I watched her making it and finally realized what I did wrong.  I used to always add too much soy sauce, but the key to this dish is the fried shallots, which bring an amazing aroma and depth to the dish.

    I tried making it again with this adjustment and the result was the same as if it was made by my mom!  This dish is super easy; all you need is ground pork, soy sauce, rock sugar, white pepper and lots of fried shallot.  You can learn how to make fried shallot at home from my Crispy Fried Shallot and Shallot oil post, or you can buy it from Asian grocery store. Be warned, though, the homemade fried shallots taste better!

    With this Taiwanese minced pork sauce, you can easily enjoy a good meal or late night supper in no time, hope you can give it a try!

    Taiwanese mined pork sauce in a blue Dutch oven with grey linen cloth on the side.

    Best Taiwanese Minced Pork Sauce (rou zhao fan)

    Edwina
    5 from 7 votes
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe
    Prep Time 5 mins
    Cook Time 30 mins
    Total Time 35 mins
    Course Main
    Cuisine Taiwanese
    Servings 8 people

    Ingredients
      

    • 2 lbs ground pork
    • 3 tbsp shallot oil or vegetable oil
    • ⅓ cup + 2 tbsp soy sauce
    • 3 tbsp rock sugar, can be replace with regular sugar
    • ¾ tsp white pepper powder
    • 1 cup fried shallot, about 3-4 big fresh shallots
    • ¼ cup water, optional

    Instructions
     

    • Heat oil in a dutch oven and stir fry minced pork until it's loose and water starts to come out.
    • Mix in soy sauce, rock sugar, white pepper powder, fried shallot, and stir to combine.
    • Cover with lid and cook on low heat for 30 minutes. Stir twice during the 30 minutes to make sure it doesn't burn. If it looks too dry, add water.
    • After it's done cooking, let it sit for another 30 minutes before opening the lid.
    • Serve with rice, noodle, veggies or any of your choice.

    Notes

      
    Did you make this recipe?Tag @cookinginchinglish on Instagram!
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    Previous Post: « Mom's Famous Taiwanese Beef Noodle Soup
    Next Post: Dan Bing (Taiwanese Traditional Style egg crepe) »

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Esther says

      October 04, 2019 at 10:57 pm

      Omg , I just tried this super easy recipe , and it’s so delicious and mouthwatering. It only takes me like lesson than 20mins to cook as I did it in pressure cooker. I bought dried shallot in Chinese grocery store to save a little time . But definitely I’ll do the fried shallot my own when time allows . This is a must try recipe and it’s very tasty . This is the best Taiwanese ground pork recipe I have ever tried !!!!!

      Reply
      • Edwina says

        October 05, 2019 at 1:10 am

        Thank you so much, Esther! I'm so glad you like it 🙂

        Reply
    2. Anonymous says

      October 22, 2019 at 6:53 pm

      Love this simple recipe

      Reply
      • Edwina says

        October 24, 2019 at 2:22 am

        Thank you so much!!

        Reply
    3. Anonymous says

      February 07, 2020 at 5:46 am

      You are so talented! I will try this recipe!

      Reply
      • Edwina says

        February 08, 2020 at 2:07 am

        Thank you so much! This meat sauce is super useful, I especially like to cook it with tofu. Cut tofu into cubes, add some meat sauce and water, and cook it together for 5 - 10 minutes, top with some green onion, chili sauce and enjoy it with rice, so good!

        Reply
    4. Alli says

      September 29, 2020 at 8:52 am

      Where is the 5-spice? Or any spices?

      Reply
      • Edwina says

        September 30, 2020 at 4:09 am

        Hi Alli, 5 spice isn't necessary for this dish. The flavor primarily comes from fried shallots and white pepper, adding other seasonings could cover or complicate the flavors that we are looking for in this dish. Of course you are more than welcome to add five spice or anything else you'd like, if that's your preference.

        Reply
    5. Jen says

      November 05, 2020 at 7:41 am

      5 stars
      This is so good Edwina!

      Reply
      • Edwina says

        November 06, 2020 at 3:49 am

        Thank you!!

        Reply
    6. Liz says

      December 01, 2020 at 2:45 pm

      5 stars
      This is sooo simple and sooooo delicious! It's become my family staple too whenever I'm too tired or lazy to cook. And you can cook this in large batches too! I make mine for the whole week for me and my husband!

      Reply
    7. Ann says

      December 23, 2020 at 6:00 pm

      5 stars
      The recipe was easy, did not require a pantry full of ingredients, and best of all, tasted like I spent HOURS making it! Thank you!

      Reply
      • Edwina says

        December 23, 2020 at 7:35 pm

        Hi Ann, I'm glad you enjoy this recipe! This is one of our family's favorite 🙂

        Reply
    8. J.Ma says

      January 13, 2021 at 12:14 pm

      5 stars
      I used to live in Taiwan and missed this dish so much! Love this recipe! What kind of noodles are used in the pictures?

      Reply
      • Edwina says

        January 14, 2021 at 8:00 pm

        That's cool! I made those noodle from scratch using pasta maker 🙂

        Reply
    9. Bellis says

      March 05, 2021 at 1:16 am

      5 stars
      Made this tonight for the family - everyone loved it. The fried egg tasted really good with the meal. I made my own fried shallots per your recipe. One pound of meat was enough for our family of four but next time I'll cook it with 2 lbs so we'll have leftovers next day.

      I'm wondering if anyone had made this without sugar? How does that affect the taste? Will be making this again for sure!

      Reply
      • Edwina says

        March 05, 2021 at 9:55 pm

        Hi Bellis, I'm so happy to hear your family enjoy it! Sugar is necessary for this dish as it helps round up and balance the saltiness from soy sauce; however, if you don't want to use sugar you can possibly replace it with honey. Hope this help 🙂

        Reply
    10. Faye says

      March 10, 2021 at 6:31 am

      Hello, what kind of side dishes would be best with this dish? I see some vegetables on the pictures. Are those persian cucumbers sliced thinly? Thank you!

      Reply
      • Edwina says

        March 10, 2021 at 8:22 pm

        Hi Faye, I usually like to eat it with some simple stir fried veggies like Taiwanese cabbage, bok choy, snow peas. And yes, those are sliced Persian cucumber. I just did a quick pickle with salt, sugar and rice vinegar.

        Reply
    11. Bryan says

      March 16, 2021 at 3:17 pm

      At first no one liked it, including several Hong Kong emigres and one 78yo immigrant with culinary training from Guangdong. But after we omitted the sugar, which everyone found cloying, people loved it. One person asked for a little more salt, and another wanted some hot sauce. But overall, it made a good base sauce without the sugar.

      Reply
      • Edwina says

        March 16, 2021 at 8:00 pm

        Hi Bryan, thanks for the comment! In Taiwanese cuisine, we like the combination of sweet and salty, but feel free to adjust base on your preference. 🙂

        Reply

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    Welcome to Cooking in Chinglish! Here you can learn how to make Taiwanese, Asian/Asian fusion and other easy and delicious food that my family enjoys eating at home.

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