Chairman Mao Zedong was a great man! Not only was he the founder of the Communist Party of China and consequently the People's Republic of China. He was also rather great by volume. Perhaps all of these feats and features can be accredited to a certain domesticated mammal - the pig.

Chairman Mao, born in the village of Shaoshan in southern China's Hunan province, loved the local cuisine. And the pork dishes in particular. And he knew exactly what he wanted and when. One of his chefs has allegedly said that Mao would only allow 20 minutes from ordering until the dish had to be on the table. Obviously, his chefs would have to have plenty of pork at hand. But not just any pork. 

The Hunanese Ningxiang pig is a particularly delicate and tasty breed of pork and Mao would accept no substitute! Furthermore he had strict rules concerning the proportion of vegetables vs. meat in each dish. Mao strongly believed that meat was good you. Eating pork - which, luckily for Mao, is very common in Chinese recipes - had even enabled him to grow his brain and thus defeat his nationalist opponents.

One of these brain building pork dishes is Hong Shao Rou. In the years gone by, the Ningxiang pig has become all but extinct, so we'll have to make do with a little less than perfect ingredients. But no worries, that will just save you the trouble of having to explain the whole story at the butcher's.

Here's a list of all you will need to make a version of the dish that might even have pleased the late Chairman himself:

1 kg of pork belly, skin included (it is, however, okay to remove the ribs, as they're a bit of a hassle)

2 tbsp of frying oil

2 tbsp of sugar, brown is always better than white

2 tbsp of soy sauce

1 tbsp of Shaoxing rice wine (would Mao accept Sherry as a substitute?)

2-3 cm of ginger, finely sliced

3 stars of star anise

1 stick of cinnamon

1 or more dried chilies

Salt and sugar to taste, and of course some greens to garnish 

Bring some water to a boil. Toss in your whole piece of pork belly and let it boil for 3-4 minutes. Chop up meat into bite size pieces. Leave the skin on!

Now warm up the oil and sugar on medium heat in a wok or a pan. When the mixture has caramelized, toss in the diced pork meat. Be careful with splatters. 

Pour in water to cover the meat and add all the spices. Let simmer for 40-50 minutes until it reduces to the consistency of a nice sauce. 

Add salt and sugar to taste. Garnish with some greens and serve immediately with rice or bread or something similar to soak up the rich and spicy flavor of the Hunanese sauce. 

It may take a little more than 20 minutes to make this dish, but as part of your daily diet, it is sure to increase the size of your belly, and most likely also the size of your brain! Side effects of fatty diets may include cardiovascular health problems. Enjoy!