Curtis Stone’s recipe for perfect roast pork

THE celeb chef shares his recipe for roast pork belly with thyme salt and blackberry vinaigrette. It’s utterly mouth-watering.

AUSTRALIAN food superstar Curtis Stone has today announced his next big thing with Australia’s number one food brand taste.com.au.

Released today, Curtis Stone has guest edited the November issue of taste.com.au magazine, bringing his trademark sunny touch.

As part of the special issue, Curtis has created an exclusive get-ahead entertaining menu that will take you all the way through summer right up to Christmas Day — including a delicious roast pork belly with thyme salt and blackberry vinaigrette. See below for the recipe.

“I absolutely love these last two months of the year — there’s that buzz in the air, when you know that summer holidays and Christmas are just around the bend” said Curtis.

Curtis Stone is guest editor of the November issue of taste.com.au magazine, out now.

Now based in LA with actor wife Lindsay Price and their two sons, this is the time of year Curtis most misses Australian shores. “The light, summer food, barbecuing and jumping in the pool with the kids” is what Curtis says he enjoys most about an Aussie summer.

When asked to confess the most embarrassing thing in his pantry, Curtis laughs “Ice Magic! I love that stuff, when it hardens up and creates a shell on the cold ice cream … bellissimo!”

Here he shares one of the recipes from the mag:

Roast pork belly with thyme salt and blackberry vinaigrette

serves 10 |prep 10 mins (+ overnight drying & 15 mins resting time) | cooking 2 hours 5 mins

Ingredients

2kg piece (or 2 x 1kg pieces) pork belly

1 tbs fresh thyme leaves, finely chopped

1 tbs sea salt flakes

2 1 ⁄2 tsp freshly ground black pepper

315g (1 1 ⁄2 cups) caster sugar

185ml (3⁄4 cup) Italian red wine vinegar

125ml (1 ⁄2 cup) water

700g fresh blackberries

3 zucchini, cut into 1cm-thick diagonal slices

3 red onions, cut into wedges

250g green beans, trimmed

1 1 ⁄2 tbs extra virgin olive oil,

plus extra, to drizzle

1 bunch watercress, leaves

picked, washed, dried

Method

1. Use a sharp knife to score the pork rind (against the grain) at 1cm intervals, taking care not to cut through the flesh. Place pork on a wire rack over a large roasting dish. Place in the fridge, uncovered, for 12 hours or overnight, to dry. Remove from the fridge 1 hour before roasting.

2. Place an oven rack in the middle of oven. Preheat oven to 250°C/230°C fan forced. Combine thyme, salt and pepper in a bowl. Reserve 1 tbs thyme mixture. Rub half the remaining thyme mixture into the meat-side of pork to coat. Turn pork over. Return pork to wire rack. Rub remaining thyme mixture into pork rind. Roast for 35-45 minutes or until rind is crisp. Reduce heat to 150°C/130°C fan forced. Roast for 1 hour or until pork is tender. Set aside for 15 minutes to rest.

3. Meanwhile, combine the sugar, vinegar, water, reserved thyme mixture and half the blackberries in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring to the boil, stirring to dissolve sugar. Use a fork to crush blackberries. Cook, stirring often, for 25 minutes or until mixture is thick and syrupy, and is reduced by half. Place remaining blackberries in a heatproof bowl. Strain vinegar mixture through a fine sieve over the blackberries. Set aside to cool.

4. Preheat a barbecue grill or chargrill on medium-high. Combine the zucchini, onion and beans in a large bowl. Add the oil and toss to coat. Season. Cook vegies, in 3 batches, for 2-3 minutes each side or until charred and tender crisp.

5. Place watercress in a large serving bowl. Add the vegies. Toss gently to combine. Drizzle with 60ml (1⁄4 cup) blackberry vinaigrette and a little extra oil.

6. Slice the pork and drizzle with remaining blackberry vinaigrette. Serve with salad.

The November issue of taste.com.au magazine is out now and also features first-time contributor, and MasterChef runner-up, Georgia Barnes along with monthly regulars Matt Preston, Manu Feildel, Marion Grasby, Colin Fassnidge, Louise Fulton Keats and Justine Schofield.

Originally published as Curtis Stone’s recipe for perfect roast pork