Cheesy Pork Chop Rice

A quintessential cha chaan teng (Hong Kong–style diner) dish, baked pork chop rice is comfort food at its finest. Simple fried rice, flavorfully marinated pork chops, and a soy-sauce-and-ketchup–spiked tomato sauce are layered under a blanket of burnished melted cheese. This recipe comes from chef Laurence Louie of Rubato, a Hong Kong–style café in Quincy, MA—one of our Best New Restaurants of 2023. Where the restaurant serves individual plated portions, this recipe is scaled up to bake in a casserole dish and be served family-style.

Louie’s pork chop rice calls for boneless pork chops that you’ll slice into strips before velveting, a technique that keeps meat succulent and tender. Adding baking soda to the pork’s marinade and mixing it vigorously creates an external coating that browns well while retaining the juiciness of the meat inside.