If you have ever been to Taiwan, you will know about a Taiwanese Classic, Pork Lard Mixed Rice, also known as 豬油拌飯.
Pork lard mixed rice is a classic Taiwanese favorite with two simple ingredients: shallots and pork lard. I know this may not sound appetizing, but trust me on it.
Like garlic confit, you cook shallots in a generous amount of fat at low heat until all its flavor is infused in the oil.
I always have Shallot Pork Lard in my fridge because you can add it to soup, steamed vegetables, or plain rice and have a delicious dinner in 2 minutes.
I grew up eating my grandma’s Pork lard mixed rice.
A humbling dish that just requires a bowl of rice, a drizzle of the soy sauce mixture, and pork shallot oil, and I promise you will be licking your bowl and asking for seconds.
When I immigrated to Canada, pork lard mixed rice was one of my most missed dishes. Luckily my grandma passed me her recipe, and now I am passing the recipe to you.
All you need to make pork lard mixed rice is shallot and pork lard.
You can render pork lard at home, or you can find pork lard at most Asian grocery markets. You can substitute pork with duck fat, chicken fat, or even olive oil if you don’t consume pork.
A quick trick my grandma taught me so the pork lard isn’t too thick and easy to use after refrigerating, is doing a ratio of 1:0.5 of pork lard and olive oil.
When refrigerated, animal fat can get hard, so mixing in olive oil will help soften the oil; therefore, it is easy to grab when using it in daily recipes.
The one tip I have when making pork lard mixed rice is patience.
Similar to making garlic confit, you want to slowly cook the shallot, so the flavor is infused in the oil while making sure that the shallot is not burnt.
I recommend cooking in medium-low heat if this is your first time making fried shallots to prevent them from burning.
Another tip is to cut the shallots into even pieces, ensuring all the shallots are cooking evenly, preventing pieces from burning. When burnt, shallot can have a bitter taste, affecting the whole batch of oil.
Do you want more Taiwanese Recipes? Here are some of my go-to recipes!
- Spicy Vermicelli Noodles (螞蟻上樹)
- Taiwanese Milk Mochi (4 Ingredients ONLY!)
- Instant Pot Taiwanese Beef Noodle Soup
- Dan Bing – Classic Taiwanese Egg Roll (15 Minutes!)
Ingredients
- 2 cups pork lard, melted
- 1 cup olive oil
- 4 cups shallots, sliced
Soy Sauce mixture (for 2)
- 1.5 tablespoons soy sauce
- 0.5 tablespoon sugar
- 1 tablespoon vegetarian oyster sauce
- In a pan, turn the heat to medium, and add pork lard and olive oil. Once everything has melted, and the oil is heated, add in the shallots.
- Cook on medium heat for 5-10 minutes or until shallots turn slightly golden. Once golden, turn the heat low and cook for another 2 minutes before turning off the heat.
- To store, pour everything into a glass container, and once fully cooled, store in the fridge for up to 1 month. You can use this as a cooking oil when making vegetables or add 1 tablespoon to soup to add instant flavor.
Pork Lard Mixed Rice
- Prepare the sauce by mixing soy sauce, sugar, and vegetarian oyster sauce.
- Optional, but I highly recommend frying a sunny-side-up egg on the side.
- To assemble, prepare a bowl of hot rice, drizzle on 1 tablespoon of the shallot pork lard and half of the soy sauce mixture. Mix well, and top with fried egg and cilantro. Enjoy!
Pork Lard Mixed Rice
Materials
- 2 cups pork lard melted
- 1 cup olive oil
- 4 cups shallots sliced
Soy Sauce mixture (for 2)
- 1.5 tablespoons soy sauce
- 0.5 tablespoon sugar
- 1 tablespoon vegetarian oyster sauce
Instructions
- In a pan, turn the heat to medium, and add pork lard and olive oil. Once everything has melted, and the oil is heated, add in the shallots.
- Cook on medium heat for 5-10 minutes or until shallots turn slightly golden. Once golden, turn the heat low and cook for another 2 minutes before turning off the heat.
- To store, pour everything into a glass container, and once fully cooled, store in the fridge for up to 1 month. You can use this as a cooking oil when making vegetables or adding 1 tablespoon to soup to add instant flavor.
Pork Lard Mixed Rice
- Prepare the sauce by mixing soy sauce, sugar, and vegetarian oyster sauce.
- Optional, but I highly recommend frying a sunny-side-up egg on the side.
- To assemble, prepare a bowl of hot rice, drizzle on 1 tablespoon of the shallot pork lard and half of the soy sauce mixture. Mix well, and top with fried egg and cilantro. Enjoy!
