I have eaten Pork Belly at several restaurants and absolutely loved it, but never seen it for sale — until last week that is. So armed with a massive slab of pork belly (which I promptly cut in half) I had to decide what to do with it!
From my research, the key with pork belly, as with any tough cut of meat, seems to be long slow cooking times. However, because pork belly has this beautiful layer of fat on the top, recipes usually call for searing it off first or cooking it with the fat exposed to the heat of the oven so it can get lovely and crispy.
In the end I chose the simplest roast recipe for my first attempt and was quite satisfied with the results. Although it fell apart somewhat when I cut it and the skin was a little too crispy, the flavour of the meat and the gravy were unbelievable. I may never make gravy without pork fat again. Seriously.
Next time, I would cook the pork for slightly less time, (in my case three hours were sufficient but I let it go 4). If you are willing to spend a bit more time try this braised pork belly recipe.
Now, once you have made this, you may be looking for more pork belly recipes for the leftovers, here are a few ideas:
Pork Belly Lettuce Wraps with an Apple and Fennel Slaw
Tortellini with Pork Belly, Asparagus and Cherry Tomatoes
Slow Roasted Pork Belly
(serves 2)
Adapted from Cook with JamiePreheat oven to 450F. Chop carrots and onion into big pieces. Place in a roasting pan with garlic. Chop up a about a tablespoon of fresh thyme leaves and combine with chili flakes, salt and pepper in a bowl. Any remaining thyme sprigs can be tossed in with the vegetables.
Place the pork belly on a cutting board skin side up. With a sharp knife make parallel lengthwise cuts about 1 cm away from each other through the skin and deep into the fat but not enough to penetrate the meat. Rub the spice mixture all over the meat, getting in between the cuts of fat and on the bottom. Place pork belly fat side up on the vegetables.
Put in the oven for 30 minutes then turn the temperature down to 325F. Cook for another 30 minutes at 325F. Remove from the oven and pour off any excess fat. Add wine and return to the oven for another hour.
Baste the pork with the juices. Then remove the vegetables and wine to a tall container. Put the pork back in the oven for another hour or until crispy on the top and fork tender. Meanwhile skim the fat from the vegetableswine mixture and put in a small sauce pan. Bring to a simmer and reduce until thickened. Sprinkle in ~1T flour and whisk together. Cook for another 15 minutes and then strain and discard all the vegetables, pressing them to get out all the juices. Keep warm, stirring occasionally until pork is ready.
{ 36 comments… read them below or add one }
Looks amazingly tender and scrumptious, love this cut but cannot get in Miami. Hakka (village where my dad comes from) use this cut to make mui choy pork (preserved veg stewed in dark soy till very tender).
Katerina,
Pork belly has been all the rage in top end restaurants here in NYC now for some time and it seems that star chefs are always competing with each other making it. Pork “cheeks” is another rage. I, like you, however, have never seen either cut offered except in the Asian stores in Flushing where I occasionally shop with a friend, and in both cases, they are frozen and not marked as to their origins. Curious where you found this cut and how it was marked. Looks terrific though. I love anything PORK. And love your site. Thanks.
Your pork belly looks beautiful here! The recipe is quite easy, just takes some time due to the slow cooking. I will try this definitely very soon.
To answer your question, yes, I have many experiences in cooking pork belly. The most common way of cooking it is by Lechon roasting. I’ll just rub the meat with mixed seasoning of salt, pepper, garlic powder and paprika. Bake in preheated oven 450 degrees for 1 1/2 hours – skin up. Then flip over (skin down) and cook for another 40 minutes. then put slit slices on the meat in 3 parts and flip over for the final time (skin up). Cook for another 10 minutes.
This is usually sliced and serve with liver gravy sauce. Try it!
If you know anywhere that actually butchers their meat in the store, you can just ask for this piece. It may not be in the display case, but butchers are usually more than willing to sell as much as they can from one animal.
Eleanor – I had a cod and tofu hot pot yesterday that was flavoured with small pieces of pork belly. What a nice surprise.
Carole – I was actually just lucky I think. The pork was even semi local (100 miles)!
Elaine – great advice I will have to try this, glad to know you do cook it with the skin on.
James – very good point, I haven’t ever searched it out before, though I might now.
I love pork belly and your recipe looks great! My family eats pork belly a lot – we usually grill quarter inch slices (on a griddle or George Foreman type appliance) and wrap it in lettuce with a spicy herb salad or kimchi. It’s very quick and satisfying! The George Foreman is great because the fat drips off the meat, leaving yummy pork flavor!
Ah!!! Nothing is better than pork. Nothing.
My mouth is watering!
Yeah.. Slow cooking will make it so soft and chewy plus he flavors will be absorb and thats really savory. However grilled pork belly is great too.
Sylvia – that sounds amazing!
Peasant Grl – pork isn’t my favorite thing but I am in love with any cured variety and now bacon as well.
kathy – I will have to try grilling it.
I’ve never even had pork belly before, but it’s definitely something I want to try!
Sylvia – that sounds amazing!
Peasant Grl – pork isn’t my favorite thing but I am in love with any cured variety and now bacon as well.
kathy – I will have to try grilling it.
Sounds delicious. Will be using your recipe with a cut my friend gave me to try. He too had a heck of a time finding it locally, so he kindly bought me some as well. Should be fantastic.
So I was trying to buy bacon from a coop I belong to, but all they had was pork belly. I had been wanting to try to make it myself, only having eaten it a couple times before. I set out internet searching for a recipe and stumbled upon yours.
Let me say that the long process of cooking pork belly is well worth it! It was delicious!! It was accompanied by some garlic kale and pinot noir.
Thanks for the recipe!!!
Kami – I want to know how it went?!
Aaron – Wow local pork belly, that must be fabbulous!!! I am so glad you liked it.
Picked up my first pork belly at my local Korean grocery store yesterday. In the process of cooking it as I speak. Had it marinate overnight with a few of my own ingredients. So far so good. Put the temperature at 275 degrees in order to coincide with another dish we are cooking, which should take a little longer.
Andy – good luck!I hope it works out.
If you are having trouble locating pork belly, try a Mexican food market. They generally sell this.
Also, for a faster way to cook this, try using a pressure cooker…results are fantastic!!! You can always sear under a broiler for crispiness, if you like.
One of my favs!
Thanks for the tip Kathy! I also can usually find it in Asian supermarkets.
I don’t have a pressure cooker, but that is another great tip.
I get a monthly delivery of meat from a CSA, and this month there was a pork belly. Yay! I’ve always wanted to make one but they don’t have them at my local grocery stories. So I found this recipe and tried it and it was great! Thanks so much.
Tried the recipe and it was great! The skin was a little to crispy but the meat tasted really tender and moist.
The only thing is your posted cook time is wrong. It calls for roasting it on high for 30 min on 425 then another 30 min on 325 on low. Then another 1 hour of roasting with the wine mixture and lastly another hour by itself. That makes it 180 minutes (3hours instead).
Joanna – you are right, thanks!
Trying this recipe with our own organic pork belly!
@Kyle, wow aren’t you luck to have your own pork! I would love to try with some lovely organic pork. Let me know how it goes.
I’ve made this recipe a couple of times to very good effect. BTW, now you can get pork belly at Whole Foods, although it’s not always on display.
@Francie – thanks for the tip! I am starting to see it more places too
Mine is in the oven right now; it smells FABULOUS!!! Cannot wait to taste it
I would love to share some thoughts about this recipe…..
@Gaby, how did it work out?
OK….having it now…..LOVING IT SO MUCH!! I bought a pork belly at my local asian market; they have it readily available. Who knew? LOL
I cut it in half ; I used 3 large carrots; 1/2 large onion; 6 garlic cloves….and extra thyme leaves. LOTS of wine also; I didn’t crush the veggies thru the strainer. I took out the carrots and onions; smashed the garlic thru the sieve into the sauce; put the carrots (along with extra carrots) in the pan; added some more white wine and red wine a bit more salt and pepper and red pepper flakes… *I like all things saucey And let it simmer in the pot till ready to serve.
Good thing I didn’t make scalloped potatoes! I just boiled russets and was a perfect foil for the pork and sauce!
What a FABULOUS FABULOUS easy recipe! Thank you!!!
HAH…I have another half in the freezer…but have to wait a while before I make it again. This is gonna be a staple in my recipe book….I’ll never use another PB recipe; this one is PERFECTION
I did have to adjust temp lower after I took out the veggies and sauce. I added more wine: red/white; added more carrots and let it simmer….a bit more salt and pepper and red pepper flakes and slowly let them marry….YUM
Well, I think I’ve said enough….hahaha
I’m a German gal and LOVE my pork and never had anything quite like this until I had a tiny sampling at a restaurant.
Yes, pork belly really is fabulous isn’t it!? And so different then other lean pork cuts which are usually so available.
Sorry! You said for 2. You must be as greedy as we are. It’s very easy to get pork belly in Northern Ireland, but quite limited in other ways!
Yes, we are also greedy
cooking up the pork belly right now, but I didnt get enough juice after adding the wine and added some beef broth, where do you think I went wrong? oh and Katerina I’m originally from Flushing, now living on LI and get my pork belly from a farm in PA that delivers to us!
Hmm, I am not sure that you did go wrong – maybe your pork was just leaner and your veggies weren’t very hydrated? Beef stock sounds like a sensible way of dealing with it.