super yum with julie.....: Thank you David Chang.....

.....for these AMAZING Pork Belly Buns. For everyone out there, David Chang is the executive chef and brains behind Momofuku. Over the past few years I have read various articles written on Chang, his innovative ideas brought into his kitchen, and how insanely long his wait list for his various restaurants are (we are talking about months long people!) I am not the type of person that gives into the hype until I experience it first hand. Well... I wasn't able to try any of his restaurants in NYC, but I was able to try his recipe on Pork Belly Buns. It seemed simple enough, all I needed were a few ingredients: steamed Chinese buns, pork belly and garnishes. Easy right?! Well, it was... to a certain degree, it was a long process, but it was worth it! I brined the pork belly for about 12-14 hours, roasted it for 2.5 hours in low heat, cranked up the heat for 20 more minutes, then took it out of the oven to rest for 30 minutes before slicing it. As for the buns, I took advantage of the fact that I live in a heavily populated Asian community and I bought them in the refrigerated aisle at a local Asian supermarket. I did not buy them frozen which is an option, but I knew the refrigerated buns were just made a day earlier. My results were amazing!! My Fams and Tone are already requesting this again for Thanksgiving! Here is a link for anyone out there that want to make there own: Pork Belly Buns

*side note* I did not follow the recipe to a T. I added my own spices to give it more diverse flavors. This is what I love about cooking... even though I have a guide (recipe) I can still make it my own and different.