Pork Belly Chili Recipe (Moo Pad Prik)
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This Thai pork belly chili recipe (moo pad prik) comes together in about 20 minutes and needs just a handful of everyday ingredients. The pork belly cooks in its own fat until golden, then gets tossed with garlic, chilies, and a simple savory seasoning.
What readers say:
“Made this really easy recipe yesterday, it came out perfect! I cut the belly after the cooking to fit into whole lettuce leaves, and added some extra fresh red onions and chilis. 10/10.“
— Fluffy
What is moo pad prik?
Moo pad prik (หมูผัดพริก) is a simple Thai pork stir-fry made with pork, fresh chilies, garlic, and a few savory seasonings. It’s a dry-style dish with no coconut milk or heavy sauce, so the focus is on the pork, the heat from the chilies, and the aroma of garlic and white pepper.
Pork belly is especially good here because the fat renders as it cooks, helping the pork turn golden and adding plenty of flavor. It’s usually served hot with steamed jasmine rice.
Dinner doesnt get much easier!
Sometimes you just want dinner to be easy. This is one of those recipes. It’s a one-pan stir-fry with pork belly, chilies, garlic, and a few simple seasonings, and there’s no complicated sauce to make.
If you want to try more pork belly stir-fries, I recommend my pad kana moo krob and basil pork belly.
Praew ♡
Learn Thai cooking step by step
My cookbook is a combination of authentic Thai recipes and Western dishes cooked with Thai flavors and ingredients. It’s a great starting point if you’re new to Thai cooking or want to cook it more often.
Ingredient notes & substitutes
You can find everything at Asian grocery stores or markets. Head to the recipe card at the bottom of this post for the exact measurements.
- Pork belly: Choose pork belly with a good balance of meat and fat. I prefer fairly thin slices because they cook quickly and the fat has time to render before the outside gets too dark.
- Chilies: I use Thai bird’s-eye or Jinda chilies. Use fewer for a milder stir-fry, or swap in a milder fresh chili if needed.
- Garlic: I like chopping it fairly fine so it spreads through the pork.
- White pepper: Adds a little warmth that you don’t get from the fresh chilies alone.
- RosDee seasoning: This is a common Thai seasoning powder that adds saltiness and savory flavor. You can find it at Asian stores or online.
- White sugar: Just a little to balance the salt and chili.
- Salt: Add carefully since the seasoning powder already contains salt.
- Green onions: Add these at the end for freshness and a little color.
How to make pork belly chili stir-fry
1: Cook the pork belly. Add the sliced pork belly to a wok or large skillet over medium heat. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the pork is cooked through and the fat has rendered into the pan.
You want the pork to take on some color before moving on. If there’s a lot of rendered fat in the wok, carefully remove some, leaving enough to stir-fry the garlic and chilies.
2: Add the garlic and chilies. Add the chopped garlic and chilies to the pork. Stir-fry until fragrant, about 20–30 seconds.
3: Season. Add the white sugar, salt, RosDee seasoning, and white pepper. Toss everything together so the seasoning coats the pork evenly.
4: Finish and serve. Turn off the heat and add the chopped green onions. Toss once more, then serve immediately with hot jasmine rice.
What to do with the rendered pork fat?
If your pork belly releases more fat than you need for this recipe, don’t throw it away!
I like straining the leftover pork fat and keeping it for another stir-fry. It adds a lot of flavor when used instead of regular cooking oil.
Let the fat cool slightly, strain out any solids, then store it in a clean container in the refrigerator.
How to store & reheat
- Refrigerate: Let leftovers cool, then store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
- Freeze: Freeze in a freezer-safe container for up to 2 months. The texture of the pork may be slightly softer after thawing.
- Reheat: Warm in a skillet over medium heat until heated through. You can also microwave it if you’re in a hurry, but the skillet gives the pork a better texture.
Pork Belly Chili Recipe (Moo Pad Prik)
Equipment
- Cutting board
- Sharp knife
- Wok or large skillet
- spatula
Ingredients
- 10 oz pork belly, thin slices
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 4 chilies, chopped, adjust to taste
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp white sugar
- 1/4 tsp white pepper
- 1/2 tsp rosdee seasoning powder, see notes
- 3 green onions, finely chopped
Instructions
- Heat a wok or large skillet over medium heat. Add the sliced pork belly and cook until browned and cooked through, letting the fat render out as it cooks.
- Remove some of the rendered fat if there’s a lot left in the pan. Add the chopped garlic and chilies and stir-fry for 20–30 seconds, until fragrant.
- Add the sugar, salt, seasoning powder, and white pepper. Stir everything together so the pork is evenly coated.
- Turn off the heat and stir in the sliced green onions. Serve hot with steamed jasmine rice.
Video
@hungryinthailand.com Pork belly with chili and garlic. #thaifood #porkbellyrecipes #thaifoodlover #foodblog
♬ นี่มันหน้าร้อนหรือน่ารัก – Bonnadol
Notes
- Use the nutrition card in this recipe as a guideline.
Made this really easy recipe yesterday, it came out perfect! I cut the belly after the cooking to fit into whole lettuce leaves, and added some extra fresh red onions and chilis. 10/10.
I also recommended to dip it in one of the many spicy sauces posted in here.
I’m glad you liked the recipe, thank you for your comment!