Throughly clean the pork belly. Cut it into 1 inch thick by 3 inches long.
In a pan, add oil and heat until smoking hot. Pan sear the pork belly and set a side.
Using the same pan, sauté garlic, onion, star anise and bay leaf.
Add in the pork belly and add light soy sauce, sesame oil, shiitake mushrooms, 2 cups water, ground black pepper and brown sugar. Boil and simmer until pork is tender. Add more water if needed.
Season with salt if needed or simply reduce the sauce until desired taste is achieved.