Hunan stir-fried pork with green chilli (Xiaochao rou)

1. Firm the pork belly in the fridge for 30 minutes, then slice it paper-thin and mix with the soy sauce and Shaoxing rice wine.

2. Cut the green chillies diagonally into 1 cm pieces and slice the garlic.

3. In a dry, hot wok, fry the chillies with a pinch of salt for 2-3 minutes, pressing them down, until the skins blister and char in patches; remove.

4. Add the oil to the wok and stir-fry the pork over medium-high heat for 3-4 minutes, until the fat renders and the edges caramelise slightly.

5. Add the garlic and black bean sauce and fry for half a minute, then return the chillies, add the soy sauce and sugar and toss together for 1 minute.

6. Serve hot with plenty of steamed rice.

Tip: Hunan's best-known home dish is a "rice thief" – it goes so well with rice that the bowl is soon empty. Blistering the chillies gives the smoky flavour; if your green chillies are very hot, mix them half and half with green pepper.