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Serve them whole or cut into strips with steamed rice or noodles and your favourite veggies. Or make tasty rice paper rolls for your lunchbox, as a party starter or light meal with the cooked strips as a sumptuous filling.
Sticky soy-glazed pork steaks
Serves 4
Preparation time: 15 minutes
Cooking time: 5 minutes
- 4 boneless pork neck steaks
- salt and pepper to taste
- 30ml sesame oil
- 30ml Thai fish sauce
- 80ml light- or low-sodium soy sauce
- 1 red chilli, chopped (or to taste)
- 1 pinch of dried garlic
- 5ml light brown sugar
- 15ml sesame seeds
1 Season the pork steaks with salt and pepper and mix with the sesame oil.
2 Mix together all the remaining sauce ingredients, except for the sesame seeds. Taste and adjust according to your preference.
3 Pan-sear the steaks in a hot pan until golden-brown and caramelised on both sides.
4 Pour the sauce into the pan, baste the pork and allow to cook until the sauce is reduced and the pork is cooked to your liking. Sprinkle with the sesame seeds on both sides.
5 Remove from the heat and allow to rest for 5 minutes before serving.
Crunchy rainbow rice paper rolls
Rice paper rolls are all the rage and this healthy treat can be made with a multitude of fresh ingredients. Rice paper is sold as thin, translucent sheets wrapped in cellophane; once softened in water and stuffed, they show off the colourful filling inside, making them not only healthy but also pretty! Using flavourful soy-glazed pork as a filling will turn this into a substantial meal.
Makes 12 rolls
Preparation time: 30 minutes
Cooking time: 15 minutes
- 4 cooked sticky soy-glazed pork steaks, thinly sliced
- 12 round rice paper sheets
- 200g sugar snap peas, chopped
- a few edible flowers (optional)
- 2 medium carrots, peeled and julienned
- 6 radishes, thinly sliced
- 250ml microgreens or soft herbs
1 Get all the filling ingredients ready.
2 To soften the rice paper, pour hot water 2cm deep in a shallow bowl that will fit the rice paper and soak one sheet at a time for 15–20 seconds. Carefully remove the sheets without crumpling them and place on a clean work surface.
3 Arrange 3 slices of radish in the middle of the softened rice paper with two edible flowers on top. Add a heap of fragrant pork, a few carrot sticks, peas and a sprinkling of herbs. Fold the rice paper over each end of the filling, then roll into a cigar shape.
4 Repeat with the rest of the rice paper and filling. Serve the rolls with a tangy dipping sauce such as homemade chilli sauce, soy sauce seasoned with chilli and ginger, or plum sauce.
Know your cut: pork neck
This is the most succulent and flavourful cut. The visible white streaks indicate that there is a lot of collagen and a small amount of marbling in the meat, making it deliciously juicy when cooked. The neck does have bones in it; it’s easier to cook a whole deboned neck or boneless neck steaks, as bones are often more difficult to manage in a pan or on the braai. Pork neck steaks with bone in them are referred to as neck chops.
