RECIPE ~ Crispy Skin Pork Belly

Recipe by Dean Zammit

Ingredients
1.5kg Pork Belly
2 tablespoons olive oil
3 tablespoons flaked sea salt
1 cup organic black quinoa (rinsed, drained)
2 Lenswood Pink Lady apples
2 radishes
1 bulb fennel
1 bunch dill (fresh or pickled)

Sauce
1L Chicken Stock
1 Navel orange – peeled
Pinch fennel seeds
1 cinnamon stick
2 cloves garlic (chopped)
1 golden shallot
1 bay leaf
1 bottle Chardonnay ‘Sirocco’

Method

1. Preheat oven to 220c (200c fan-forced)

2. Score pork skin. Rub in half the oil and salt, pressing salt into the skin. Place pork, skin side up, in a large roasting pan. Roast for approximately 1.25 hours.

3. In a saucepan over low heat, add a splash of olive oil, the shallots and garlic and sweat until soft. Add a good splash of Chardonnay to deglaze the pan. Add the fennel seeds, cinnamon stick, bay leaf and chicken stock, simmering until the sauce thickens and is fragrant. Strain the sauce into a clean saucepan, season to taste and set aside in a warm place.

4. Place quinoa and 2 cups of water in a saucepan and bring to the boil over a medium heat. Reduce the heat to low, cover the saucepan with a lid and simmer for 15mins or until the liquid is absorbed. Remove from heat and use a fork to fluff the grains.

5. Back to the pork… After approximately 1.25 hours of cooking, turn the oven temperature down to 200c (180c fan-forced) and continue to roast for around 30mins or until the meat is tender. Remove from oven. Rest the pork in a warm place for 10mins.

6. Meanwhile, using a mandoline, shave the radish, apple and fennel, and place into a bowl. Cut the orange into small pieces and add to the bowl. Finally add the quinoa and mix to combine. Season to taste.

7. Spoon the quinoa into a mound on a warmed serving platter or warm individual plates. Using a sharp knife, carve the pork into thick slices and arrange on top of the quinoa.

8. Finally, pour the sauce over the pork and garnish with the dill. Now pour yourself a glass of Chardonnay ‘Sirocco’ and enjoy!