Tiger Bite Pig Recipe
For some reason, Taiwanese people really like name their food in a different and funky way. For example, “Coffin Bread” and also “Tiger bite Pig”, which is also known as “Koah-pau” in Taiwanese.
Why is it called tiger bite pig? Because the bread looks like a tiger chewing a piece of big and juicy pork in it’s mouth, that’s why we call it Tiger bite Pig. Another dish named after the look.
Nowadays, Taiwanese business man created different filling and flavour for this dish. For example, they use deep fried chicken fillet, cod fish fillet or beef to replace the stewed pork belly. So, this dish is just like a “Taiwanese version of hamburger”.
This dish has another lucky meaning of it. Because the shape looks like a “wallet” so it’s also mean “rich” or “a lot of money” in Taiwan. So, let’s make it at home and eat a lot of tiger bite pig for praying for a lucky financial year! (I need eat a lot of tiger bite pig this year and need probably three times a day, lol).
Tiger Bite Pig
Ingredients
Ingredients for Stewed Pork
- 450 g pork belly with skin
- 2 spring onions
- 2 thin slices ginger
Seasonings for Stewed Pork
- 1 tbsp maltose
- 1 tbsp brown sugar you can also use 80g crystal sugar, I just use the ingredients I got at home and I think crystal sugar is available in most of Chinese supermarket
- 400 g soy sauce
- 100 g rice wine
- 1 star anise
- 2 slices liqourice optional
- 5 cm cinnamon stick you can use a Chinese spice bag to replace all the spice in this dish if you can find it in Chinese supermarket
- Stock for covering the pork
Ingredients for Steamed Bread
- 200 g plain flour
- 250 g bread flour
- 1 cup water
- 7 g dried yeast
Instructions
Procedures for Stewed Pork
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Use a frying pan to heat up 1 tablespoon oil and turn the gas power to lowest and fry the pork belly. Don’t use too much oil or too high heat because I don’t want you to burn yourself.
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Fry the pork until it’s turn slightly golden colour and place it on a plate then brush a little bit of soy sauce on every side of it to colour it with soy sauce. Leave it until it’s cool down and we cut it into 1.5 cm thick and 5 cm wide slice.
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Place every thing into a small stock pot and use full gas power to boil it first, then turn the gas power to the lowest to simmer it until the pork is nice and soft.
Procedures for Steamed Bread
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Mix yeast with the water and melt the yeast.
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Mix step 1 with flour and knead it until it’s turn to a smooth dough.
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Find a warm spot for the dough and cover it by a cling film or clean and wet tea towel then leave it for 30~40 minutes. I live in Edinburgh and the weather here is really cold so I leave it for 30~40 minutes.
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After the dough arise. We separate it into 70g each and knead it into round shape then we use a rolling pin to flatten it into a long oval-shaped. After we brush oil on the flatten dough and fold it to half and use rolling pin gently press down the central to make the shape settle.
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Steam it in a steamer with medium to full gas power for 8~10 minutes until you touch the bread and it’s has resilience, not too soft like the dough before. Then it’s done!
Recipe Notes
* After you’re done steaming the bread and stewing the pork you can start to make your tiger bite pig. Traditionally, we put peanut powder and coriander with stewed pork. But you also can put anything you like it.
this is like a kong ba bao right? hahaa very nice 🙂
Yeah, I think so.
Do you also have this dish in Singapore?
Glad I read your well-written and informative blog. Look forward to folowing you here. Cheers!
Hi Lazaro,
Thank you for your comment.
I’ll keep working on my blog and try my best to provide more informative blogs on Chinese and Taiwanese cuisine in the future.
What a nice recipe. And your photos are absolutely beautiful!
Hi Cooking Rookie,
Thank you so much for your comment.
My husband, who is a photographer, also thanks you for the compliment.
That’s a great little appetizer or snack to put on the table to prevent starving guests. Looks super yummy!
Hi Linn,
Thank you for your comment.
I think this dish is also good for lunch because it looks like a Taiwanese style sandwich or hamburger.
Makes me drool just thinking about it…. ^_^
Just found you. You are now bookmarked and I will follow.
I am always looking for very good fried rice recipes—-so, if you have any special ones and you have time I would appreciate it.
In my old age, I have become a fan of oriental cooking so I will follow you closely
Thanks
gramps
Hello Gramps,
Thank you very much for your comment.
I have two recipes about fried rice on my blog right now but if you have special enquiry (for example: seafood fried rice, beef fried rice…etc etc) I would certainly help you with it.
My husband always comes home with questions about Chinese and Taiwanese cooking from his work colleagues. I actually really enjoy answering their questions. I think this gives me more cooking inspiration for my blog.
So, please don’t hesitate to ask my any questions.
Hello! this looks really yummy. I think unique names for foods is prevalent in Asian cultures. My mom’s from Thailand, and I know there are names for things that always makes me laugh or scratch my head a little, to know what the origination for the name comes from! Love your blog by the way, have a great weekend!!
Hi Joanna,
Enjoy your weekend too!
Hello! This looks really yummy. I think unique names for food is a prevalent thing in most Asian cultures. My mom is from Thailand, and there are names for alot of things that always make me laugh or scratch my head to know the origination of the name. For example, there is a dish that literally translates to Tiger Cry Steak. Why is the Tiger crying?? Is it because the steak is so delicious?!?
Love your blog by the way, and have a great weekend!
Hello Joanna,
Thank you very much for your comment.
That Tiger cry steak dish name just made my husband and I laugh out loud at home but some of these names are really great.
Do you have a picture of that “Tiger cry steak” dish?
We’re so curious about that.
Congratulations!! that was a wonderful recipe!! making it to the top nine shows just how much everyone enjoyed it!! keep up the good work, I love reading your posts
all the best
Dennis
Hi Dennis,
Thank you for the comments and always being so supportive for my blog and recipes.
I’m very appreciate it.
Very informative and will be sure to come again.
Hi Robinson,
Thank you for your comment and I hope you will be back my blog soon!
Have a nice day!
love your site. my boyfriend’s dad always makes koah-pao for me all the time since it’s one of my favorite Taiwanese dishes. its such a simple and tasty dish. i wished i had one right now!
Hi, that’s great you love my site. Koah-pao is really tasty, everyone here that has tried it loves it!
Hi there! Sorry I didn’t get back to you right away, but yes, I do have a picture of that Tiger Cry Steak. It also has a recipe if you are so inclined to experience why the tiger is crying(haha). It’s a simple dish. I havn’t had it in a long time, but from what I remember, the flavors were delicious. Email me, and I will get that to you. Have a great weekend!
Hi Joanna,
Many thanks for reply my comment. Chris and I are so curious about the Tiger cry steak. lol I really want to see how tiger cry for steak. (This steak must be super tasty ! ;)). Especially I love thai food and I always want to learn more thai food. 🙂
Those names are crazy fun! I always wonder if the wacky nature is because something also gets lost or convoluted in translation from Chinese to English? In any event, why change a fun thing? 😉
Hi Carolyn, thanks for your comment. I completely agree with you. The literal translations of Chinese things to English often makes them sound funny but everyone loves to have their dish have a fun name
wow it looks scrumptious.. I’d love to make them too.. pork buns yummmmm *Drools*
Hi, thanks for your comment. Have a go at making them, they’re quite easy but really tasty. Love your buttered popcorn caramel ice cream.
This sounds outstanding. OMG. The pictures really look delicious. I want one right now. Looks like a lot of work but it seems like it is worth it.
been craving taiwanese food and thought i would make them on my own. what happened to the helpful pictures? they are not loading.
Hi Cathy, sorry about the pictures not loading, I’m in the process of updating this website so some pictures may be missing. I’ve now updated these and you should be able to view them.
Would love to hear how you got on with making them.
Thanks
Liv