A Singaporean Mum

My mum’s side is Peranakan, and I only really started learning how to cook Peranakan food when I was studying in Australia. Even though I went back every year for Chinese New Year, I still missed those warm, comforting dishes my grandma used to cook at home.

I remember calling her once, trying to ask for ingredients, and she patiently explained everything in Hokkien… except I understood absolutely nothing 😅

Funny enough, the Asian grocer near my place was Vietnamese-Chinese, and she spoke Teochew! So I ended up “translating” my way through ingredients like “buey kak” (which I later found out is star anise 八角) and “kui pui” (桂皮, cinnamon bark). That was for another dish — “kong bak,” a savoury braised pork — but today’s recipe is a different family favourite.

Because if I had to pick the most iconic Peranakan pork dish, it would be Babi Pongteh — a savoury-sweet stew with taucheo (fermented soy beans). And honestly… because it leans slightly sweet, it’s the one I love the most 😆

So here it is — my version of a dish I love so much, slowly passed down through generations, now cooked in my very modern kitchen.

Ingredients

1kg pork collar, cubed

1 potato, diced

2 tbsp taucheo (fermented soybean paste)

2 tbsp soy sauce (to taste)

2 tbsp caramel sauce

Water (enough to cover the meat)

2 tbsp minced garlic

4–5 shallots, sliced

Traditional Pot Braising Method

1. Sauté aromatics & base

• Heat up a pot and add cooking oil.

• Sauté minced garlic, sliced shallots, and potatoes until fragrant.

2. Brown the pork

• Add pork and sauté until lightly seared on the surface.

3. Build the sauce

• Add taucheo and caramel sauce, mixing well to coat the pork evenly.

4. Braise slowly

• Pour in enough water to fully cover the pork.

• Press the pork down so it’s submerged.

5. Slow cook

• Bring to a simmer and braise for 2–3 hours, stirring occasionally until tender and rich.

• Add soy sauce, to taste.

6. Serve

• Serve hot with warm rice.

Instant Pot Method (Busy Day Rescue)

1. Sauté aromatics & base

• Set Instant Pot to Sauté mode.

• Heat oil, then sauté minced garlic, shallots, and potatoes until fragrant.

2. Brown the pork

• Add pork and sauté until lightly seared.

3. Build the sauce

• Stir in taucheo and caramel sauce until well combined.

4. Add liquid

• Pour in enough water to cover the pork completely.

• Press down to submerge.

5. Pressure cook

• Cancel Sauté mode.

• Cook on High Pressure for 45 minutes.

6. Finish the sauce

• Release pressure, then switch back to Sauté mode.

• Boil down sauce for 10–15 minutes until slightly thickened.

• Add soy sauce, to taste.

7. Serve

• Serve warm with rice and watch it disappear quickly.