Vietnamese Caramel Pork & Eggs – Thịt kho trứng. Flashbacks from Mom’s kitchen
Vietnamese caramel pork is very special to me. If I could name one of the many comfort foods in Vietnamese cuisine that brings back warm, delicious memories to all my Viet friends and family, it would be this dish: Thịt kho trứng. This classic Vietnamese comfort food is braised pork belly (or shoulder/butt) with boiled eggs.
What is Vietnamese Caramel Pork & Eggs
Thit heo kho trung is one of the many classic examples of Vietnamese home-cooking at it’s best. This humble Vietnamese braised caramel pork dish speaks volumes to me about who I am and the simple dishes in life that I need to keep me satisfied, sane and happy. The rich, slightly sweet broth with tender braised pork is perfection on top of warm white rice. Add a boiled egg with Vietnamese pickled mustard greens and what you have is a classic comfort food that Vietnamese families can all relate to.
Video: How to Make Vietnamese Caramel Pork with Eggs
Every morning, at 6 am, Mom would be busy at the stove, starting her morning routine of cooking for her household of hungry kids and my foodie father. We’d wake up to this warm pot of slow, simmering goodness and it was a wake up call that that filled the house with braised love. My always multi-tasking Mom would get the little twins ready for school with her left hand, while feeding the rest of us with her right hand.
She’s an ambidextrous, culinary super-hero. You would have to watch her genius to believe everything that I say.
With a shoe in one hand and a soup ladle in the other, Mom dished out bowls of hot rice, topped with her braised, melt in your mouth pork. We’d shovel the rice, and braised pork in our mouths, then take a bite of the caramelized boiled eggs and pickled mustard greens. It was a breakfast of champions that fueled us out the door for another day of school.
Homecooked Meals
As children, we didn’t always treasure all the hours of home cooked goodness for three meals a day. Eating thit heo kho trung all the time as a kid became mundane and sometimes us kids just wanted our big mac and fries, ya know? Growing up with homemade chow at home, but with the tempting sights of pizza, hamburgers and fried chicken all around us was challenging. Those processed fast food delicacies always made us yearn for the exotic American foods that existed outside my mother’s kitchen.
Eventually, home cooked meals that my mom slaved over every morning became dull. We eventually became content with a bowl of sugary cereal for breakfast and because it was so quick and easy. I know that sounds sacrilegious to the culinary world, but I suppose when you’re growing up as a low income, ethnic kid like myself, fast food was considered “gourmet”.
Craving Fast Food
As kids we wanted American bacon, sausage and pancakes that Ronald McDonald served at his restaurant. Even if he was just a clown, he made me happy with his big red lips, jolly face and fabulous cheeseburgers.
As we grew up, moved out and went away to experience the independence and debt that came with adulthood, the days of longing for pizza and burgers slowly disappeared. The freedom of not having parents around meant that home cooked meals by Mom became a scarcity. There’s always that trade-off. It was the thoughts of those mornings with hot rice and Mom’s braised pork belly that we yearned for when we walked back through her door.
She would snicker with her motherly pride and always know that it was because of her hot rice dishes that we couldn’t be far from home for too long.
Mom always says that no matter where we go or what we eat, nothing brings us back to the comforts of home like a meal of hot rice, a little meat/fish and some greens. Vietnamese braised pork and eggs is a perfect example of those childhood memories that I eventually fall back on. This is the power of humble, home cooking and that’s why this Vietnamese caramel pork is so special to me.
-Diane
This recipe was originally published in 2009 and updated in 2022 with a video and new photos.
How To Make Vietnamese Braised Caramel Pork & Eggs
Vietnamese Braised Caramel Pork & Eggs (Thịt Kho Trứng)
Ingredients
Pork Ingredients
- 2 pounds (907 g) pork shoulder and/or pork belly (cut into 1-inch cubes)
- 1 Tablespoon (15 ml) oil
- 3 large shallots (or 1 small onion), minced (about 3-4 tablespoons)
- 3-4 cloves garlic , minced or crushed
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon (2.5 ml) black pepper (preferably fresh ground)
- 1.5 cups (360 ml) water or Coconut water (not coconut milk or coconut juice)
- 2 Tablespoons (30 ml) fish sauce
- 4 (optional) hard boiled eggs , peeled
Caramel Ingredients
- 1/3 cup (67 g) sugar
- 2 Tablespoons (30 ml) water
Serve With Options
- cooked white rice
- Vietnamese pickled mustard greens
- Vietnamese pickled carrots & daikon
- chopped green onions, cilantro, fresh chilies
Instructions
Marinate the Pork:
- In bowl combine pork, oil, onion/shallots, garlic, salt and black pepper. Stir to combine, set aside.
Make the Caramel Pork:
- Make Caramel: Combine the sugar and 2 Tablespoons water to sauce pan large enough to later fit the pork. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. After several minutes of boiling, the mixture will begin to turn to a golden brown. Using silicone spatula (less sticking), stir the mixture slowly as the caramel browns. Do not leave the caramel sauce unattended!
- Once the sugar begins to caramelize, it will turn color very quickly. The caramel should have have consistency and color like light maple syrup.
- Add Pork: As soon as the mixture turns to a medium golden brown, add the marinated pork. Slowly & carefully stir the mixture to completely coat the pork with the caramel sauce. Make sure to scrape the sides of the pan to incorporate all the caramel.
- Continue browning the pork on medium/high heat for about 5 minutes. Add the 1.5 cups of water or coconut water and the fish sauce then bring to a low boil.
- Reduce heat to maintain a gentle simmer and continue braising on low heat for about another 45 minutes to 1 hour, OR until pork is tender. Skim excess fat/bubbles that floats to the top. Make sure to stir occasionally while cooking. After 45 minutes, taste the pork. If it’s to your desired texture, remove from heat.
- If you're adding boiled eggs, add the boiled eggs about 2 minutes before you finish cooking the pork. Don't cook the eggs too long in the sauce or the eggs will be over boiled and too hard with green edges. When the pan is removed from heat, the eggs can continue sitting in the sauce to absorb more flavor.
- Serve the pork and/or boiled eggs over rice, pickled mustard greens, carrots & daikon and whatever other serving options you desire. Spoon some sauce over the rice because that's the best part!
Notes
Video
Nutrition Information per Serving
Hope you enjoy these Vietnamese Caramel Pork & Eggs. Here’s Other Related Recipes
AMAZING!!!! My friend’s mom used to make this all the time and it was delicious! I’ll have to try this sometime, thanks for the post!
I was also very curious about how to make the caramel sauce as I think it gets used in a lot of different dishes. I’d heard something about a pan, heating it to high temperatures, then sticking it in a water bath or something but this way sounds much better 🙂
Ahhh..this is one of my favorite dishes. This is also my comfort food that my mom makes.
Aw Diane! I just got the craziest urge to book a flight home to eat some of mom’s home cooking. This story was touching and I so related. I even remember being embarrassed of some of the “weird” things my mom would make me eat, though I now crave these things.
I’m going to try this braised pork.
Aww, that warmed my heart quite a bit 🙂 Happy (advanced, by a lot!) mothers’ day! Now, why would she have a shoe in one hand?! Just curious!
Pork in caramel sounds fantastic. I know it’s probably nothing like the stew we had at the izakaya but my mind is going there. Drooool!
I’ve been cooking this dish for a while, and I use coconut juice instead of water just to add a bit of sweetness. I adore this dish 🙂 It feels like home!
Delicious! My Dad uses star anise and coconut juice in his recipe for thit heo kho trung, but this version looks incredible!
Passionate Eater- Yes, love the coconut juice too! Your Dad definitely knows his way around the kitchen!
yum…this is def by far one of my favorites when i want some vietnamese soul food!! 🙂 and totally perfect with the pickled mustard! i’m really craving this now, and will prob make it again this week!!!
I grew up w/ pork belly as well (Taiwanese)…Needless to say as I’m growing older I’m appreciating the dishes a lot more….esp the pork belly.
this post makes me all nostalgic. I love kho, but mum usually substitutes the chicken eggs for quail eggs.