Chinese Pork Ciabatta
4 servings
90 minutes
Chinese-style pork ciabatta is an amazing blend of Italian baking and Eastern aromas. The crispy ciabatta with its light porousness becomes the perfect base for a juicy pork steak soaked in a rich marinade of honey, spices, and soy sauce. Cloves, star anise, and cinnamon give the meat deep spicy notes, while wine vinegar adds zest. A garnish of fresh tomatoes, basil, and aromatic herbs brings lightness and balances the rich flavor of the meat. This dish is perfect for a cozy home dinner or a festive table. Each bite of this ciabatta reveals a complex bouquet of flavors—from sweet spices to fresh greens and spicy meat—creating a true symphony of gastronomic delight.
1
Making the marinade: in a mortar, grind cloves, chili, star anise, add cinnamon, nutmeg, honey, wine vinegar, and soy sauce.
- Cloves: 3 pieces
- Dried chili pepper: 2 pieces
- Star anise: 1 piece
- Cinnamon: 1 teaspoon
- Nutmeg: 1.2 teaspoon
- Liquid honey: 3 tablespoons
- Red wine vinegar: 2 tablespoons
- Soy sauce: 2 tablespoons
2
We wash the pork, dry it with a paper towel, and generously coat it with marinade. We cover the dish with pork with plastic wrap and send it to the refrigerator for at least an hour.
- Pork steak: 4 pieces
3
Once the steaks are marinated, heat the grill pan. Sear the pork for 3-4 minutes on each side.
- Pork steak: 4 pieces
4
While the meat is cooking, we slice the tomatoes into half-moons, separate the basil leaves from the stems (the stems are not needed) and tear them by hand, small leaves can be added whole, chop the garlic, finely chop the parsley, and slice the onion into half-moons. We mix everything, add pepper, and let it sit for a few minutes so the tomatoes release their juice and the herbs share their wonderful aromas.
- Tomatoes: 3 pieces
- Purple basil: 3 stems
- Garlic: to taste
- Parsley: to taste
- White onion: to taste
- Freshly ground black pepper: to taste
5
We take the meat off the heat. Let it rest for about five minutes. Meanwhile, we slice the ciabatta lengthwise and grill it on both sides until it has characteristic stripes.
- Ciabatta: 2 pieces
6
Assembling the dish: we drizzle ciabatta with olive oil, place a piece of meat on top, add tomatoes with herbs on the meat, and cover with a second piece of ciabatta.
- Extra virgin olive oil: to taste