Chipotle Roasted Pork Belly

, from Issue #74. September, 2017
Photography by Josh Griggs.
Chipotle Roasted Pork Belly

A Mexican-style pork recipe imbued with smoky chipotle sauce. With long, slow cooking, the meat becomes succulent and a quick flash under a hot grill gives you shards of crispy crackling. It also makes a great tortilla topping served with guacamole, coleslaw and some of the braised onions.

Serves: 6–8

INGREDIENTS

1-kilogram piece pork belly, skin scored
2 tablespoons chipotle paste
2 tablespoon tomato purée
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 teaspoon ground cumin
2 cloves garlic, crushed
2 cups chicken stock or water
2 large red onions, thinly sliced
sea salt and ground pepper
To serve
Mexican Green Sauce, see recipe below


Mexican Green Sauce
1 cup packed coriander leaves
zest and juice 1 large lime
2 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
1 teaspoon honey
1 teaspoon ground cumin
4 tablespoons olive oil
habanero tabasco sauce, to taste
sea salt

METHOD

Preheat the oven to 120°C fan bake.

Cut the pork into 3 long pieces and season the meat side generously with salt and pepper.

Stir the chipotle paste, tomato purée, sugar, cumin and garlic together and spread 2 tablespoons of the paste over the meat.

Whisk the stock or water into the rest of the paste and pour into a shallow roasting dish. Add the onions, then place the pork, skin-side up, on top.

Rub the skin with a little oil then sprinkle generously with salt.

Roast for 4–5 hours or until very tender when pierced with a skewer. Turn the oven to grill and preheat until hot.

Remove the pork from the dish and place on a shallow baking tray. Place under the grill until the skin is crisp, watching closely as it can catch and burn quickly.

Rest the pork for 10 minutes before slicing.

Serve with the warm braised onions and Mexican Green Sauce, if making.


Mexican Green Sauce
Place all the ingredients in a food processor. Add tabasco to taste, season with salt, then blend until smooth.