Braised Ground Pork

Ingredients:
1/2 lb ground pork
1/3 cup sliced shallot
2 tbsp minced garlic
1/3 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup chinese rice wine
4 cups water
1/2 cup dried shallots or dried onions
2 tbsp sugar
2 star anise
1/2 tsp cinnamon powder (If you don't have star anise and ground cinnamon, then substitute with 1 tsp Five spice powder)

Preparation:
1. Heat oil, saute chopped shallot and garlic until fragrant.
2. Add star anise and ground cinnamon, stir well.
3. Add in ground pork and stir quickly to break the meat into small bits.
4. Add soy sauce, sugar and rice wine, once the meat has changed color.
5. Pour 4 cups of water and cover the pan, let it simmer for 15 min.
6. Uncover the pan and simmer for 1hr.
7. You can add mushrooms, lotus, tofu, edamame to the mixture if you like.