Pidan lean porridge is a traditional Han Chinese famous dish, belonging to the Huaiyang cuisine, and is loved by most people. There are also techniques to making pidan lean porridge. How can you make the pidan more fragrant, the porridge softer and more glutinous, and the lean meat more flavorful? Let me teach you how to make a nutritious and delicious pidan lean porridge in 6 simple steps.
Ingredients: 1 piece of lean meat, 2 pidans, 1 piece of ginger, appropriate amounts of oil, salt, and MSG.
The key to cooking a pot of soft and delicious pidan lean porridge is as follows:
1. Choose the rice
There are two types of rice: japonica rice and indica rice. Generally, indica rice is used for cooking rice as it has a chewy texture; for porridge, japonica rice is the best choice for a soft, glutinous, and fragrant texture. For pidan lean porridge, you can choose round, short pearl rice, which makes the porridge tastier.
2. "Marinate" the rice
After washing about half a bowl of rice, mix it with 2 tablespoons of oil, an appropriate amount of salt, and a little water. Marinate for about half an hour. This will make the cooked pearl rice softer and more delicious, and it will be refreshing and not greasy to eat.
3. Remove the fishy taste and flavor the meat
For the porridge, use lean meat or cured salty lean meat; it doesn't have to be a specific cut of pork, just make sure to keep the meat in one whole piece. When cooking with lean meat, first blanch the meat in boiling water, then drain the water and evenly sprinkle salt on the surface to let it absorb the flavor.
4. Add ingredients only after the water boils
Pour clear water into the pot. Some people like to throw the rice, meat, and pidans in at the same time, but the porridge cooked this way will definitely not have a good texture. The correct way is to add the ingredients only after the water boils. First, add the meat block and ginger slices. Do not reduce the heat. When the meat block enters the boiling water, the outer part cooks and hardens, sealing in the meat juices inside. This way, the cooked meat will be more tender and have a better texture. When the water boils again, add the marinated rice and the first chopped pidan. This way, the pidan will blend into the porridge.
5. High heat first, then low heat
After adding the ingredients, first cook over high heat for 20 minutes, then reduce to low heat and cook for another hour and a half. With sufficient cooking time, the porridge will be soft, flavorful, and easy to digest.
6. Tips for handling the lean meat and pidan
After cooking over low heat for an hour and a half, chop the second pidan and take the piece of meat out of the porridge. Shred it into thin strips by hand and put it back into the porridge along with the second pidan. Cook them together for another half hour, then turn off the heat. The second pidan is added half an hour before turning off the heat because this makes the pidan soft and smooth, so you can taste it while eating the porridge. When the meat is shredded and put back into the porridge, it retains its fresh flavor and is especially delicious. The porridge cooked this way does not need any more salt and is easy to digest.