Stuffed Pork Belly Recipes

ROAST STUFFED PORK BELLY

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 240°C/fan220°C/gas 9, or as high as it will go. Place the pork belly skin-side down on a board. Using a very sharp knife or Stanley knife, carefully remove and reserve the flap of belly that sits over the rib bones, then remove and reserve the ribs. Turn the belly over, short side towards you, and score it widthways, 1cm apart, across the skin.
• Make the stuffing. In a frying pan, soften the onion in the oil over a low heat, then remove to a bowl to cool. Finely chop 250g of the reserved belly flap meat in a food processor (if there's any remaining, discard it). Add to the bowl of onion along with the remaining stuffing ingredients, and some seasoning. Set aside.
• Place 30cm lengths of string at 2cm intervals across a large board. Lay the pork on top, skin-side down, so the string is running the same way as the scored lines. Spoon the stuffing lengthways down the middle of the pork belly, heaping it up into a cylindrical shape, then bring the sides of the belly up and around the stuffing so that they meet tightly. Tie tightly with the string, and weigh to calculate the cooking time (25 minutes per 450g, plus 20 minutes). Turn the rolled pork belly over and rub the sea salt into the skin, making sure that it gets right into the score lines.
• Place the ribs in an oiled roasting tray and place the pork on top, with the join underneath. Roast for 20 minutes to brown and crisp the skin, then turn the oven temperature down to 180°C/fan160°C/gas 4 and roast for the remainder of your calculated cooking time.
• When the pork is cooked (a metal skewer inserted into the centre of the meat should be hot at the tip), remove from the oven and rest on a board, uncovered, for 20 minutes. Carve into slices, cutting along the score lines you made earlier. Serve with the crispy crushed potatoes and fennel salad.

STUFFED PORK BELLY RECIPE

Steps:

• Score the pork belly skin with a sharp knife in a cross pattern. Lay the belly cut on a board and place, uncovered, in the fridge overnight.
• The next day, make your stuffing. Dry-fry the fennel seeds in a pan over a high heat for 1-2mins, then tip into a pestle and mortar and leave to cool. Grind well, then mix with a good pinch of salt and place in a large bowl.
• Heat the olive oil in a non-stick frying pan and add the onion. Season and cook gently over a low heat for 10mins. Add the garlic, and cook for another 2mins, then add the mince. Cook until the mince is browned. Set aside and leave to cool.
• Transfer the mince and onion mix to the bowl with the fennel seeds, and add the egg, apple, sage, breadcrumbs, pistachios, lemon juice and nutmeg.
• Lie the pork belly on a board, skin-side down. Place the stuffing into a sausage shape lengthways down the middle of the belly. Wrap the sides of the belly around the stuffing and tie with butcher's string. Place seam-side down in a roasting tin, uncovered, and chill for at least 2hrs, preferably overnight. You want the skin to dry out completely so that it crisps up when you roast it.
• To cook the pork, take it out of the fridge about an hour before cooking to come to room temperature. Heat oven to 180C or Gas 4 and cook the pork for about 2hrs, turning the tin every 30mins or so. After 2hrs, turn the heat up to 220C or Gas 7 and cook for another 20mins. Remove from the oven and leave to rest for 15-20mins. Carve and serve with sides.

PORCHETTA

Steps:

• Prepare the pork belly by first scoring the skin lightly in a diagonal checkerboard pattern, allowing for 1 inch between score lines. Take care not to cut through the skin entirely to the fat layer. The idea is to score it just enough that the skin splits while roasting for maximum crispiness and crackling!
• Next, turn the pork belly skin side down, and use a two pronged roasting fork or a metal kebab skewer to poke 1 inch deep holes on the underside of the belly about 1 inch apart.
• Prepare the marinade paste by mixing the ground fennel seeds, sage, rosemary, crushed red pepper flakes, garlic, salt, sugar, black pepper, lemon zest, and olive oil. A quick tip is to lightly toast your own fennel seeds in a dry pan for an incredible burst of flavor. They toast very quickly over medium heat, so be careful not to burn them.
• Rub the marinade all over the pork belly, including the sides and the skin. Place the marinated pork belly skin-side up on a sheet pan, cover in plastic wrap, and place in the refrigerator overnight. 12 hours of marinating time is ideal.
• The next day, take the marinated pork belly out of the refrigerator and let it sit out at room temperature for about 2 hours. When it's at room temperature, position a rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat to 475 degrees F.
• Now you're ready to roll your pork belly into that signature porchetta shape. Put the pork belly skin side down. Roll the pork belly from the uncut side until it reaches the other side of the pork belly. Due to the thickness of the cut, it's more like a fold than rolling. Have your butcher string handy, and tie the roast with string around the roast tightly several times, about 1-inch apart.
• Spread the sliced onion on a sheet pan, and add just enough water to cover the surface of the entire sheet pan. Place the roast on top. If there are still lots of herbs and spices on top of the pork roast, brush them off the skin and place them on the sides, otherwise they will burn.
• Put the roast in the oven for 15 minutes at 475 degrees F. Rotate the roasting pan 180 degrees, and then roast for another 15 minutes. Reduce the heat to 325F, and continue roasting for 2 hours.
• Check the pan every 20 minutes, adding enough water to keep the pan juices from burning. It is important not to let the pan drippings burn, since you will be serving your porchetta with it.
• After a total of 2½ hours in the oven, the skin of your porchetta should be a slightly dark golden brown, and you should be able to see the diagonal scores. At this stage, the skin may look crisp, but if it is still smooth, it will likely still be a bit tough and leathery. So, to make the porchetta skin cracklin' and crispy, turn the oven temperature back up to 450F.
• Roast the porchetta for another 10 to 15 minutes once the oven reaches 450F, and check it every 5 minutes, or until you see the skin bubble up. The skin on top of the roast will bubble up first, and, when this happens, place a long but narrow piece of foil on top of the roast lengthwise to cover the top end-to-end, leaving the sides of the roast exposed to the high heat. Keep roasting until the skin on both sides get more of that bubbly crackling look.
• Use your own judgment on how much you want to crisp up the skin. The general the rule of thumb is that if the skin is bubbled up, it will be crispy, and if it is somewhat smooth, then the skin will still be a bit tough and leathery. Once you're satisfied, take the roast out of the oven and let it rest for 15 minutes.
• After the roast has rested, cut and remove the butcher's string carefully, as it will be stuck to the skin. Transfer the roast to a serving plate, and cut the roast where the string was tied to get perfectly portioned 1½-inch thick slices.
• Pour the pan juices through a strainer into a gravy separator. If you want more pan juices, pour hot water on the pan to deglaze it first. Pour the juices into a bowl or small gravy pitcher and serve on the side.