ITALIAN-STYLE PORK BELLY
Italian-style pork belly and cheek (just one 😬) roasted with Verjuice, onions and pears. Absolutely soft, juicy and flavoursome. Served with fluffy sexy mash, steamed tenderstem broccoli and butternut cubes.
1,5 kg pork belly, deboned
500 ml hot chicken stock
375 ml Verjuice (juice of pressed unripe green grapes) OR apple beer (cider)
4 to 6 ripe pears, halved lengthways
4 onions, halved
4 bay leaves
salt and pepper
*I added one pork cheek
You can do this in the oven or in slow cooker like I did as I was out for the morning.
Oven:
Preheat to 180°C. Place the pork belly in a large roasting pin, skin side up. Score the skin and place the pears, onion and bay leaves around the pork. Combine the verjuice and chicken stock and pour into the roasting pan until it comes halfway up the side of the pork, but does not cover the skin. Season to taste.
Roast for 1 to 1 and a half hours until the meat is tender and the skin is crisp. The pears and onions should be golden and caramelized. Serve immediately with mashed potato.
Slow cooker:
Prepare as for the oven. Set the cooker on High for 4 hours. Very carefully remove the pork, onions and pears to a baking dish. Sprinkle a bit of demerara sugar and mustard powder over the pork skin and a sprinkling of salt. Grill in the oven until the pork skin is crispy and golden brown.
I made a delicious gravy from the juices in the slow cooker by mixing a bit of water and cornstarch into a paste to thicken the juices.
Recipe posted and photo: Elsabie Templeton
geskuif