Thai-Style Pork — The Stew That Holds You While You Change

September. Fall. Hana is eight months old. The subscription service is one year old. Banchan Labs has survived its first year. James and I marked this quietly — a bottle of sparkling water at the kitchen table after Hana went to bed, a review of the numbers (4,000 subscribers, $18,000/month revenue, modest but real profit), a moment of saying, out loud, "We did it." Not "we made it" — the company is young and fragile and could still fail. But we did the thing. We took the idea and we made it real and it has lasted a year and people are eating Korean food from our boxes and crying over our recipe cards and that is enough. That is more than enough.

School is starting everywhere and the neighborhood is full of children with backpacks and I think: in five years, Hana will have a backpack. In five years she will walk to school. She will not walk to school from this condo — the condo does not have a school nearby. We need the house. The house hunt intensifies.

James found a listing on Thursday: a four-bedroom Craftsman in Wallingford. Fixer-upper, the listing said. Good bones. Needs a kitchen renovation. The price was at the top of our range but not above it. We drove by on Friday. The house was on a tree-lined street. The yard had a maple tree. The porch had a railing that needed paint. James said, "This is it." I said, "We haven't been inside." He said, "I know. But this is it." He was doing the thing James does — the product manager instinct, the ability to see the finished product in the raw material. I trust his instinct. We scheduled a tour for Monday.

The recipe this week is the one-year-anniversary doenjang jjigae — the stew I make for every milestone, every celebration, every moment that matters. The stew is unchanged. I am changed. The stew holds the changes. That is what a good stew does: it stays the same while you change around it, and the changing is held, and the holding is comfort, and the comfort is doenjang jjigae, forever, always, the stew that cracked me open in college and has been holding me together ever since.

The doenjang jjigae is mine and mine alone — the one I’ve made so many times the recipe lives in my hands, not on paper — but what I can share with you is the spirit of it: a savory, slow-built pork stew with layered aromatics and a broth that rewards patience. This Thai-Style Pork is the closest cousin in my rotation, the one I reach for when I want that same quality of warmth and depth but in a form I can hand to you with measurements and a method. Make it the night you have something to quietly celebrate. Make it the night you drove by a house on a tree-lined street and thought, this is it, even before you’ve been inside.

Thai-Style Pork

Prep Time: 15 min | Cook Time: 35 min | Total Time: 50 min | Servings: 4

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 lbs pork shoulder or pork tenderloin, cut into 1-inch cubes
• 1 tablespoon neutral oil (such as avocado or vegetable oil)
• 1 medium yellow onion, thinly sliced
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon fresh ginger, grated
• 1 stalk lemongrass, bruised and cut into 2-inch pieces
• 2 tablespoons fish sauce
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes (or to taste)
• 1 can (13.5 oz) full-fat coconut milk
• 1 cup low-sodium chicken broth
• 1 red bell pepper, sliced
• 1 cup snap peas or green beans, trimmed
• Juice of 1 lime
• Fresh cilantro and sliced scallions, for serving
• Steamed jasmine rice, for serving

Instructions

1. Brown the pork. Heat oil in a large heavy-bottomed pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Season pork cubes lightly with salt. Add in a single layer and sear, undisturbed, for 3–4 minutes until golden. Turn and sear the other side. Work in batches if needed. Remove pork and set aside.
2. Build the aromatics. Reduce heat to medium. Add onion to the same pot and cook 3–4 minutes until softened. Add garlic, ginger, and lemongrass; stir and cook 1 minute more until fragrant.
3. Add the sauce base. Stir in fish sauce, soy sauce, brown sugar, and red pepper flakes. Cook 30 seconds, letting the sugars begin to caramelize.
4. Simmer the stew. Return pork to the pot. Pour in coconut milk and chicken broth. Stir to combine and bring to a gentle boil. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer 20 minutes, until pork is tender and the broth has thickened slightly.
5. Add the vegetables. Remove lemongrass stalks. Add bell pepper and snap peas. Simmer uncovered 5 minutes, until vegetables are just tender but still bright.
6. Finish and serve. Squeeze lime juice into the stew and stir. Taste and adjust fish sauce or sugar as needed. Serve over steamed jasmine rice, topped with fresh cilantro and sliced scallions.

Nutrition (per serving)

Calories: 420 | Protein: 32g | Fat: 24g | Carbs: 18g | Fiber: 3g | Sodium: 820mg