How to get perfect pork crackling
Good pork belly is all about the crackling … and resisting the primal urge to break off a crisp shard before it’s ready to be served. Here’s the best way to achieve that satisfying crunch every time.
There is an inherent beauty about breaking something perfect. Though a nightmare for many, there is something about the anticipation of impact, the discharge of tension and the discovery of what lies beyond that makes breaking through a crisp shell desirable.
Whether you are breaking an egg, snapping a sheet of chocolate or shattering caramel, you can feel the resistance as you apply force, followed by the sudden release of energy as it breaks.
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Likewise, perfect pork crackling is a primal pleasure and on numerous occasions as a child (and, if I am honest, still to this day) I have succumbed to the temptation to break off a crisp shard of salty pork crackling.
Good pork belly is all about the crackling, the satisfying textural crunch as it shatters and dances on the palate, giving way to the rich succulence that lies beneath. At the restaurant, we age our pork for up to eight weeks to allow the skin to dry and for the best flavour to develop. While a wood fire provides the ideal dry heat for the perfect crackling, it is possible to get some amazing results in the comfort of your own home. It’s all about the skin, so the drier the better, and scoring the skin with a sharp knife allows the rendering fat to escape, while the skin morphs into a magnificent golden crust.
Choose pasture-raised pork as the meat is more flavoursome and nutritious, while the fat is more palatable. The alchemy of pairing rich meat with fruit goes back to medieval times and still resonates today, whether it be roasted peaches, plums or in this case an apple butter. Apple butter captures a balance of tartness and sweetness combined with the richness of slow caramelisation and imbued with the fragrant warmth of ginger, cinnamon, and nutmeg. This rich ambrosia is equally at home on toast or with yoghurt, or as an accompaniment for cheese.
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RECIPE: Cracking pork belly
Ingredients
1kg free-range pork belly, rib bones on
- 60g coarse sea salt
- 2 star anise
- ½ teaspoon Kampot peppercorns (see note)
- Zest of 1 orange
- ½ bunch rosemary
- 10g sea salt
For the apple butter
- 1kg apples, peeled and roughly chopped (I like Pink Ladies but any slightly tart apple will do)
- 375ml dry cider
- 25g fresh root ginger, finely chopped
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon nutmeg
- 60g soft brown sugar
- 20ml apple vinegar
Method
- Most pork belly comes pre-packaged, so you need to get it as dry as you can for the best results. Remove from packaging, pat dry and with a sharp knife (I use a Stanley knife) score the skin evenly 5mm apart, being careful not to cut into the flesh.
- Place skin-side down on a bed of coarse salt and refrigerate for 4-5 hours. Turn the pork, remove the salt from the skin, place on a rack and return to the fridge, uncovered, overnight, enabling the skin to dry out fully.
- The next day, in a mortar and pestle, grind the star anise, peppercorns, orange zest, rosemary and salt. (Note: If Kampot peppercorns are not available, use pink peppercorns; they have a brighter, fruitier flavour than plain black peppercorns).
- Rub the mixture well into the underside of the pork belly (not the skin). Leave for 1 hour at room temperature. Preheat your oven to 180C. Put the pork belly, skin side up, on a wire cooling rack to allow air to circulate around it. Sit the rack on a baking tray to capture fat and juices from the meat as it cooks. Roast the pork belly for 2 hours. Raise the temperature to 220C and cook for another 30-40 minutes. Remove the pork belly and allow to rest for 10 minutes prior to carving. Serve with the apple butter.
- For the apple butter, combine all the ingredients in a pan. Cook over medium heat for 30-40 minutes, until broken down to a purée. Remove from the heat and, while still warm, blend until smooth, then pass through a sieve into a clean pan.
- Return to the heat and continue to cook on a gentle heat for 1 hour 40 minutes to 2 hours, 100-120 minutes, until thickened and caramelised to a dark fudge colour and consistency. Remove from the heat and allow to cool before serving. This can be kept refrigerated for up to 8 weeks. Serves 3-4