A Vietnamese braised pork belly and egg dish built around Vietnamese caramel sauce – a deeply coloured, bitter caramel that defines the sauce.

Caramelised Pork Belly and Eggs (Thịt Kho Trứng)

Thịt kho trứng is a Vietnamese caramelised braised pork belly and egg dish built around tender pork, stained eggs and a glossy caramelised sauce. It’s rich, savoury and deeply comforting, the kind of dish that makes sense with hot rice and something sharp on the side.

While it may look similar to Chinese braised pork dishes, the flavour is quite different. This version doesn’t rely on five spice or a soy heavy base. Its depth comes from nước màu (Vietnamese caramel sauce), fish sauce and coconut water, giving it a cleaner, gently sweet savoury flavour that feels distinctly Vietnamese.

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Prep Time 30

Cook Time 1

Total Time 1 30

Course Main Course

Cuisine Vietnamese

Servings 4 portions

Equipment

1 medium pot for boiling eggs
1 Small saucepan for Vietnamese caramel sauce
1 pressure cooker with sauté function
1 stovetop-safe clay pot 20cm or larger; or wide pan for reduction
1 slotted spoon

Ingredients

Pork and Eggs

900 g pork belly remove any bones, skin on, cut into 4cm pieces
6 eggs
30 g neutral oil
40 g shallots finely chopped
15 g garlic finely chopped
500 g coconut water
3 tbsp fish sauce this may seem like a lot, but balances with the coconut water
4 g sea salt
2 g black pepper freshly ground
2 red chillies split lengthways

Nước Màu (Vietnamese Caramel Sauce)

70 g caster sugar
20 g water
60 g boiling water freshly boiled, added in 3 additions

To Serve

4 serves jasmine rice
2 spring onions thinly sliced

Instructions

Eggs and Pork Prep

Bring a medium pot of water to a boil, lower in the eggs and cook for 11 minutes.
Transfer the eggs to an ice bath, cool for 5 minutes, then peel and set aside.
Add the pork belly to a clean pot, cover with cold water and bring to a boil.
Simmer for 3 minutes, then drain, rinse briefly and pat dry.

Blanching gives you a cleaner sauce and a better final appearance.

Nước Màu (Vietnamese Caramel Sauce)

Add the caster sugar and 20g water to a small saucepan over medium heat.
Cook without stirring until the sugar melts, bubbles and turns deep amber with a reddish-brown edge, about 6 to 8 minutes – swirl the pan only if needed.

6-8 minutes is a guide. You will want to take the caramel further than a dessert caramel, but being careful not to burn it.

Turn off the heat and move the pan off the burner immediately.
Carefully add the 60g boiling water in 3 additions, standing back as it will bubble hard.

Important not to add cold water, as the differences in temperature will make the caramel furiously spit. Make sure its freshly boiled water.

Return to low heat for 30 seconds, swirl until smooth, then set aside.

Pressure Cooker Pork

Set the pressure cooker to sauté and add the neutral oil, shallots and garlic.
Cook for 2 minutes until fragrant but not browned.
Add the blanched pork belly and stir for 2 to 3 minutes to coat in the aromatics.
Add the nước màu (Vietnamese caramel sauce) and stir until the pork is evenly coloured.
Add the coconut water, fish sauce, sea salt, black pepper and split chillies, stir well and scrape the base of the pot.
Seal the pressure cooker and cook on high pressure for 18 minutes.
Allow natural release for 10 minutes, then carefully release the remaining pressure.

Clay Pot Finish

Open the pressure cooker and skim off excess fat only if the surface looks too oily – keep some fat as it gives the sauce its gloss.
Transfer the pork and sauce to a stovetop-safe clay pot, or to a wide pan for reduction if the clay pot is too small.
Add the peeled eggs and simmer uncovered over medium-low heat for 15 to 20 minutes, turning the eggs every 5 minutes, until the eggs are stained, the pork is glossy and the sauce lightly coats a spoon.
Turn off the heat and rest for 10 minutes before serving – the sauce will settle and darken slightly.

Assembly

Serve with hot jasmine rice, pickled mustard greens, spring onion, sliced chilli and freshly ground black pepper.

Notes

Storage

Store pork and eggs in the braising sauce in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. Reheat gently on the stovetop. The sauce will thicken when cold – add a small splash of water to loosen if needed.

Key pitfalls:

Nước màu (Vietnamese caramel sauce) should taste mildly bitter and not sweet – it’ss there for colour, depth and gloss. Take the sugar to deep amber with a reddish-brown edge and stop. If it smells burnt, discard it and start again.
Once the caramel reaches deep amber, turn off the heat and move the pan off the burner before adding the boiling water – residual heat will keep darkening it.
Only reduce in the clay pot if you have a confirmed stovetop-safe clay pot, otherwise reduce it in the pressure cooker or a saucepan.
The uncovered reduction stage is what creates the glossy finish – do not skip or rush it.

Keyword braised, caramel, clay pot, coconut water, eggs, fish sauce, nước màu, pork belly, pressure cooker

Caramelised Pork Belly and Eggs