Thit Kho
Pork belly braised in caramel and coconut milk with eggs.
Ingredients
- 800 g Pork belly
- 4 Egg
- 4 tbsp Sugar
- 4 tbsp Fish sauce
- 4 cloves Garlic
- 2 Shallot
- 1 tin Coconut milk
- ½ tsp Black pepper
Method
- Cut the pork into chunks, then hard-boil and peel the eggs.
- Cook the sugar in a heavy pot to a dark amber caramel, watching closely so it doesn't burn.
- Mince the garlic and thinly slice the shallots, then add them with the pork, fish sauce, and coconut milk and bring to a simmer.
- Braise gently, adding the eggs halfway, until the pork is tender and glossy, about 60 minutes.
- Serve with steamed rice.
Tap “Start cooking” for live timers that flag what to get ahead on while something simmers.
About Thit Kho
Thit kho, more fully thit kho trung, is a Vietnamese braise of pork belly and eggs in a caramel-and-coconut sauce, a dish tied closely to Tet, the Lunar New Year, when big pots of it are made to last through the holiday. The defining move is cooking sugar down to a dark amber caramel before the pork goes in; that caramel is what gives the braise its mahogany colour and a bittersweet backbone that keeps the sweetness from cloying. Fish sauce brings salt and funk, coconut water or milk lends a mellow richness, and slow simmering renders the pork belly meltingly tender and glossy.
The hard-boiled eggs are as prized as the meat, soaking up the sauce over the hour-long braise until they take on the same amber tint and savoury depth. It's homey, warming food, served simply with steamed rice to balance the richness and often something sharp and pickled on the side. This version rewards patience and attention at one point in particular: the caramel goes from perfect to burnt in seconds, so watching it closely is the difference between deep flavour and a scorched pot.
Thit Kho: frequently asked questions
How many calories are in Thit Kho?
A serving has about 1417 calories — 29.1g protein, 24.8g carbs, 134.6g fat, 3.2g fiber. Figures are estimated from the ingredient amounts and will shift with your portions and brands.
Is it high in protein?
Each serving has about 29.1g of protein, roughly 8% of its calories.
Is Thit Kho gluten-free?
Based on its ingredients, Thit Kho has no gluten-containing components, so it's naturally gluten-free — as always, check that any packaged ingredients you use are certified gluten-free to be safe.
How long does Thit Kho take to make?
About 90 minutes start to finish, but only around 12 of those are hands-on — the rest is largely unattended cooking time you can step away from. In the Homecooked app the timers and parallel steps are sequenced for you so the hands-on part feels even shorter.
How many servings does Thit Kho make?
This recipe makes 4 servings. In the app you can scale it up or down and the ingredient amounts adjust automatically.