Babi Kecap (Slow Braised Pork with Ginger, Chilli & Sweet Soy Sauce)

Today is our 12th year wedding anniversary.

Looking back, the big day was a blur. Jet lag, rush, tiredness, excitement and nervousness all contributed to it.

Mr J and myself were still working in Malaysia. He just secured a job in Sydney, we were due to move to Australia in September the same year. It was a massive year for both of us.

Our official wedding was held in Holland with a dinner reception in Kuala Lumpur for our friends and relatives that couldn't make it to our wedding ceremony.

It was hard to plan a wedding ten-thousand kilometers away. So, we did the unthinkable: Let my parents-in-law be in charge of planning our big day! Talking about risk takers....

I wasn't aware that a wedding is an intense full day event in Holland. It started with breakfast at my parents-in-law's house with 20 close friends and family members, followed by a lengthy outdoor photo session. Morning coffee (Dutch can't live without their coffee). The civil ceremony at the town hall. A serene and relaxing boat cruise on the beautiful river. Dinner before more relatives and friends joined us at the church wedding and then a wedding reception in a cozy and charming restaurant converted from an old farm.

You may be wondering why I am featuring an Indonesian dish to accompany this story. Our wedding dinner that was planned by my parents-in-law turned out to be an exotic affair of catered Indonesian dishes paying tribute to my origin. Never mind Malaysia and Indonesia are actually different countries... I don't blame them as I know my parents wouldn't have a clue about the differences between German and Dutch cuisines either..

I can't remember any of the dishes served on the day except for this Babi Kecap dish because it was so delicious that I remember my dad kept going back for more and we whispered to each other that it was the most tasty Babi Kecap we had ever tasted.

Fast forward 12 years, we are counting our blessings. Happily married with our 8 years old Miss C and content to have found our soul mates in each other.

Happy anniversary J!

Babi Kecap Recipe
(Adapted from Rick Stein's Far East Odyssey)
Serves 6

Ingredients

2 tbsp vegetable oil
100 g shallots, thinly sliced
50 g garlic, crushed
25 g peeled ginger, finely grated
1.25 kg lean pork shoulder, cut into 3cm chunks
4 tbsp kecap manis (I use Conimex brand which is a Dutch Indonesian brand. Mr J grew up with the flavour of this brand)
2 tbsp dark soy sauce
3 tbsp Tamarind water
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
3-4 medium-hot chillies, seeded and chopped
4 red bird's eye chillies, left whole
500 ml Asian chicken stock
Crisp fried shallots, to garnish

Method

1. Heat the oil in a large, heavy-based pan over a medium heat. Add the shallots and fry until they are soft and richly golden. Add the crushed garlic, ginger and 1/2 tsp salt and cook for 1 minute. Add the pork to the pan and fry for 2 minutes until lightly coloured. Add the kecap manis, dark soy sauce, tamarind water, pepper, chopped and whole chillies and stock. Leave to simmer, uncovered, for about 1 1/2 hours, stirring now and then towards the end of cooking, until the pork is tender.
2. Lift the pork out of the sauce with a slotted spoon onto a plate. Boil the cooking liquid until it has reduced to a well-flavoured, slightly thicken, shiny, dark brown sauce. Season to taste with salt, return the pork to the pan and stir in.Spoon the pork onto a warmed serving plate, scatter with the crisp fried shallots and serve.