Don Signature Crab - Singapore Food Guide

Kong Bak Pau (Braised Pork Buns)

Singapore-style Kong Bak Pau: succulent braised pork belly (kong bak) slow-braised in soy and spices, served in pillowy steamed pau for a hawker-style snack or light meal.

Kong Bak Pau (Braised Pork Buns)

About this dish

Kong Bak Pau is a beloved Singapore snack that you’ll find from kopitiams to Chinatown hawker lanes — a slice of glossy, caramelised braised pork belly tucked into a soft steamed pau with pickled cucumber and fragrant coriander. This Singapore-style version keeps the classic Cantonese braise but adds local pantry touches so it works for weeknight dinners, pasar malam snacks or a casual weekend makan with family.

Think of it as hawker-centre comfort food: the pork is slowly braised until meltingly tender in a mix of light and dark soy, rock sugar and warm spices (star anise, cinnamon), creating a lacquered glaze that echoes popular zi char flavours. The steamed bun cuts through the richness, while quick-pickled cucumber, sliced chilli and fresh coriander give the crunchy, spicy lift — perfect for sharing at a kopitiam table or as part of a family-style spread in the heartlands.

This recipe is tuned for the home cook in Singapore — ingredients you can pick up at NTUC FairPrice, Cold Storage or your neighbourhood wet market, and simple techniques you can do with a wok or heavy-based pot. Serve Kong Bak Pau as a teatime snack, supper at home after a late shift in the CBD, or add it to a festive spread alongside achar and sambal for a modern Peranakan-Chinese twist. Leftovers keep well and are great reheated in a steamer for lunchboxes or a lazy weekend brunch.

Ingredients

  • 800 g pork belly, skin removed or left on depending on preference, cut into 6–8 cm slabs
  • 2 tbsp vegetable oil
  • 4–5 shallots, peeled and halved
  • 6 cloves garlic, smashed
  • 3 slices ginger (about 20 g), smashed
  • 2 tbsp light soy sauce
  • 2 tbsp dark soy sauce (for colour)
  • 2 tbsp oyster sauce
  • 3 tbsp Shaoxing wine or dry sherry (optional)
  • 40 g rock sugar or 2–3 tbsp brown sugar
  • 500–700 ml water or low-salt chicken stock (enough to cover pork halfway)
  • 2 star anise
  • 1 cinnamon stick
  • 1 tsp five-spice powder
  • 1 tsp white pepper
  • 8–12 store-bought steamed pau / mantou (or homemade if preferred)
  • Quick pickle for crunch: 1 small cucumber, thinly sliced; 3 tbsp rice vinegar; 1 tbsp sugar; 1/2 tsp salt
  • Garnish: small bunch coriander (cilantro), leaves picked
  • Optional: sliced red chilli or bird’s eye chilli for heat
  • Optional dipping: hoisin sauce or sambal chilli
  • Salt to taste

Step-by-Step Method

  1. Prepare the pork: pat pork belly dry and score the fat lightly if skin-on. Season lightly with a pinch of salt and white pepper.
  2. Caramelise the sugar: heat a heavy-based wok or pot over medium heat, add vegetable oil and rock sugar (or brown sugar) and stir until melted and golden-brown to form a caramel — careful not to burn.
  3. Sear pork: increase heat to medium-high, add pork belly slabs and sear each side in the caramel until the meat is browned and glazed, about 2–3 minutes per side.
  4. Aromatics and sauces: push pork to one side, add shallots, garlic and ginger to the pot and stir briefly until fragrant. Pour in light soy, dark soy, oyster sauce and Shaoxing wine, mixing the caramel and sauces to coat the pork.
  5. Add spices and liquid: add star anise, cinnamon stick, five-spice powder and pour in enough water or stock to come halfway up the pork. Bring to a boil over high heat.
  6. Simmer gently: reduce to a low simmer, cover with a lid slightly ajar, and braise for 90–120 minutes until meat is very tender and easily pulled apart with chopsticks — turn pork once halfway and skim any excess oil if needed.
  7. Reduce the sauce: once tender, remove pork and increase heat to reduce the braising liquid to a thick glossy glaze (about 8–12 minutes). Return pork to the pot and spoon glaze over to lacquer the pieces.
  8. Quick-pickle cucumber: while pork braises, mix rice vinegar, sugar and salt until dissolved, toss cucumber slices and set aside for at least 10 minutes to crisp-pickle.
  9. Warm the pau: steam store-bought pau or mantou for 6–8 minutes until soft and fluffy (use a bamboo steamer or electric steamer); alternatively, steam in a rice cooker on the steam tray.
  10. Assemble and serve: slice pork into thumb-thick pieces, tuck into warm pau with pickled cucumber, coriander and sliced chilli; finish with a smear of hoisin or sambal if you like extra heat. Taste and adjust seasoning like a zi char cook — add a splash more light soy for saltiness or a pinch of sugar for balance.

Tips & Serving Ideas

  • Buy pork belly from your neighbourhood wet market for the best texture; NTUC FairPrice and Cold Storage also stock good cuts if you prefer convenience.
  • If you can’t find rock sugar, substitute with brown sugar but lower the heat slightly when caramelising to avoid burning.
  • To get a deep mahogany colour like hawker stalls, use a splash of dark soy but balance with light soy to avoid oversalting; taste and adjust as you reduce the sauce.
  • Skim the fat from the surface during braising for a cleaner sauce, or refrigerate leftovers and remove the solidified fat before reheating.
  • For a fast weeknight version, cut pork into smaller cubes and braise for 45–60 minutes until tender — the flavour will still be excellent.
  • Reheat leftovers gently in a steamer rather than microwave to preserve the texture of the pork and pau; steamed pau revive beautifully.
  • Adjust chilli heat for local palates: add sliced bird’s eye chilli for authentic kick, or use mild red chilli for families and kids.

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