Slow-Roast Pork Belly with Shattering Crackling & Apple Sauce
3 h · Hard
#autumn#comfort#high-protein#weekend
Three unhurried hours that turn a cheap cut into the best thing you will cook all autumn. Low heat melts the fat into the meat until it collapses at the touch of a fork; a blast at the end blows the skin into amber blisters. Sharp apple sauce cuts straight through it.
Ingredientsfor 4 portions
- 500 g Pork Belly, Raw, skin on, scored
- 2 tsp Sea Salt
- 2 tsp Fennel Seeds, crushed
- 1 tsp Black Pepper
- 3 medium Apples, peeled and chopped
- 20 g Granulated Sugar
- 1 tbsp Butter
Steps
- Pat the pork skin bone dry and score it in close parallel lines through the fat only. Rub the sea salt, crushed fennel seeds and pepper deep into the cuts. If you have time, leave it uncovered in the fridge for a few hours — dry skin is the single biggest factor in good crackling.
- Heat the oven to 160 °C and sit the pork on a rack over a roasting tin so the fat can drip away.
- Roast for 2 hours 30 minutes, until the meat is fork-tender and has shrunk visibly from the skin.
- Meanwhile, cook the apples with the sugar, butter and a splash of water over low heat for about 15 minutes, until they collapse into a rough purée. Taste, and sweeten further only if the apples are very sharp.
- Turn the oven up to 230 °C and give the pork a final 20–25 minutes, watching closely, until the skin bubbles, pops and turns amber all over.
- Rest the joint for 15 minutes before carving — cutting straight away lets all the juice run out onto the board.
- Carve into thick slices with a serrated knife so the crackling stays intact, and serve with the warm apple sauce.
