Tom Kerridge's Roast Pork Belly With Apple and Cider Sauce
The pork belly in this recipe is cooked to perfection with super crispy crackling and a punchy apple and cider sauce. It’s ideal for a laid-back autumn Sunday lunch. For perfect crackling every time, score the skin and salt well in all the crevices to draw out moisture and help the fat to puff and crisp up. You can ask your butcher to score the skin or to do yourself with a sharp knife – just don't cut all the way into the meat.
Ingredients
Roast Pork
Apple and Cider Sauce
Method
Step 1
Preheat oven to 160°C fan.
Step 2
Lay the pork belly onto a tray. Rub the skin with 1 tablespoon of salt, making sure to rub it between all the slits of the scored skin. Leave this for 15 minutes to draw moisture out of the fat then pat the skin dry with paper towel.
Step 3
Meanwhile, grind the fennel seeds lightly in a pestle and mortar and mix in the remaining salt. Sprinkle a little on the underside and the remainder on the skin.
Step 4
Place the pork onto a non-stick rack over a roasting tin. Add 500ml of water into the roasting tin and put it on the middle shelf of the oven for 2.5 hours. Rotate the roasting tin halfway through, adding more water to keep the underside of the pork from drying too much.
Step 5
Remove the roasting tin from the oven and increase the heat to 200°C fan.
Step 6
Lift the rack holding the pork off the roasting tin and set it to one side. Add the shallots, apples, sage and cider to any juices remaining in the pan. When the oven has come up to heat, pop the rack of pork back on top of the roasting tin and place on the middle shelf of the oven for another 30 minutes or until the crackling is puffed and crispy, the apples are tender and most of the liquid has been absorbed.
Step 7
Remove from the oven and leave the pork to rest for 10-15 minutes. Tip the cooked apples and shallots from the roasting pan into a blender along with any remaining juices and blend until almost smooth. Add a little seasoning to taste and pour into a bowl to serve.
Step 8
Remove from the oven and leave the pork to rest for 10-15 minutes. Tip the cooked apples and shallots from the roasting pan into a blender along with any remaining juices and blend until almost smooth. Add a little seasoning to taste and pour into a bowl to serve.
