A fried-rice base — egg-fried with diced onion — topped with a seared pork chop, smothered in tomato sauce, and blanketed in shredded mozzarella. The whole plate goes under a broiler until the cheese blisters and browns at the edges. Eat by scraping the brown corners with the back of a fork.
Emerged in Hong Kong's cha chaan tengs in the 1950s, where cooks grafted the Western baked-cheese plate onto Cantonese fried rice. The dish became a lunchtime staple across the city by the 1960s.
The plate arrives with the smell of browning cheese. A shallow foil-edged dish: egg-fried rice base with onion bits visible, a bone-in pork chop on top, a thick red-orange tomato-ketchup sauce poured over, then shredded mozzarella blistered in the broiler. The corners of the cheese have gone brown. Scrape the brown crust first with the back of a fork, then push through to the rice underneath — the sauce has soaked in at the edges and the middle stays firm.
The pork chop is seared before baking — not baked raw — giving it a Maillard crust that survives the broiler. The tomato sauce here is half ketchup, not a real tomato sauce, which is intentional: the acidity is blunted and the sugar is high, so it caramelizes under heat rather than going acidic. The mozzarella is chosen for pull-and-bubble rather than for flavour. This is the cha chaan teng shortcut stack: fast sear, bottled sauce, quick broil — the whole plate in under 12 minutes.
Variations
Tsui Wah's version uses a thicker pork chop and more cheese. Capital Café runs a beef version. Some shops use canned tomato instead of ketchup, giving a sharper, less sweet sauce. A few cha chaan tengs substitute Edam or processed cheese slices for mozzarella.
On the Palate
Where Baked Pork Chop Rice sits in the Chinese flavor cloud
Sear the pork chop before it ever sees the broiler and use day-old rice: the pre-formed Maillard crust survives the cheese bake, and dry cold rice fries into separate grains instead of clumping to mush.
Ingredients
Serves 2
How it's made
7 steps · 45 min
- 115 min
Combine light soy sauce, sugar, and a pinch of salt in a bowl; tenderize the pork chops by pounding with the back of a knife, then marinate for at least 15 minutes.
- 27 min
Heat a heavy skillet over high heat until smoking; sear the pork chops 3 minutes per side until amber and just cooked through, then set aside.
Watch outThe chop is ready to lift when both sides are amber-crusted and it's just cooked through, not fully done.
- 32 min
Stir together tomato sauce and ketchup in the same skillet over medium heat for 1 minute until combined; remove from heat.
- 45 min
Wipe the wok, heat over high heat, add oil, pour in beaten egg and scramble for 10 seconds until just set, then add diced onion and day-old rice; stir-fry 3 minutes, breaking up any clumps, until each grain is separate.
Watch outStir-fry until every grain is dry and separate and jumps loose in the wok, no wet clumps left.
- 52 min
Pack the fried rice into a heatproof baking dish, lay the seared pork chops on top, then spoon the tomato sauce evenly over the chops.
- 67 min
Cover the entire surface with shredded mozzarella and place under a broiler at 220°C for 5–7 minutes until the cheese blisters and the edges char.
Watch outPull it the moment the cheese blisters and the edges char; a few dark spots are the flavour, not a mistake.
- 71 min
Serve immediately in the baking dish; scrape the browned cheese corners with a fork to mix into each bite.
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