The Exquisite Bocuse restaurant chain features the most precious ingredients of Cantonese cuisine that include abalone and sea cucumber. [Photo by Gao Erqiang/China Daily]

Bao Hua has three priorities for 2017: to open the fifth branch of his fine dining chain in Shanghai, to keep perfecting his signature red braised pork, and to build a running track for some 50 pigs at his farm in Chongming island.

The last task, the restaurateur says, is the foundation for all his work.

"You need the right proportion of fat for the right pork, and the right pork for the right everything on a Chinese table," says the 51-year-old, who believes pork is as integral to Chinese cuisine as salt.

The founder and president of the Exquisite Bocuse restaurant chain, which offers Cantonese cuisine, is a former police officer who has found success in the city's high-end food and beverage business.