Kitchen Greatest Hits: Five-spiced Pork Belly with Spring Onions & Sweet Soy
Nigel Barden shares his favourite recipes
Last updated 27th Jan 2022
Chef Nigel Barden joins Simon Mayo's Drivetime Show to create delicious recipes for Kitchen Greatest Hits.
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Five-spiced Pork Belly with Spring Onions & Sweet Soy
To celebrate Chinese New Year on 1st February, this week's recipe is Five-spiced Pork Belly with Spring Onions & Sweet Soy from The Dumpling Sisters Cookbook: 100 Favourite Recipes from a Chinese Family Kitchen. The cookbook is written by sisters Amy and Julie Zhang, and published by Weidenfeld & Nicolson.
The recipe includes two dishes, with the pork belly as the centre-piece of both. The first is called Mum’s Cracking Five-spiced Roast Pork Belly which will give you amazing crackling. The second is perfect for left-overs from the first dish and is served with spring onions, sweet soy sauce and jasmine rice.
Ingredients
Mum’s Cracking Five-spiced Roast Pork Belly
Serves: 8-10
1kg slab belly pork, about 4cm thick, skin on
2 tbsp salt
For the rub
2 tsp five-spice powder
1 tbsp granulated sugar
2 tsp light soy sauce
1½ tsp salt
Five-spiced Pork Belly with Spring Onions & Sweet Soy
Serves 4
400g cooked Mum’s Cracking Five-spiced Roast Pork, chopped into 2cm pieces
6 slices ginger, cut into matchsticks (Nigel suggests a thumb sized piece of peeled fresh ginger)
10 Spring onions, cut into 3cm lengths
Steamed jasmine rice, to serve
For the sauce
2 tbsp light soy sauce (Nigel says you can use 2 tbsp of regular soy sauce)
¼ tsp dark soy sauce (Nigel says you can omit if necessary)
2 tbsp granulated sugar
Method
Mum’s Cracking Five-spiced Roast Pork Belly
- Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas mark 4. On the meaty side of the pork, make a series of parallel cuts about 2cm apart and to within 1cm of the skin. Place the pork, skin-side down, in a large stockpot and cover completely with boiling water. Use a heavy bowl to weigh the pork down if it starts to curl up, and simmer gently for 10 mins. Transfer the pork, skin-side up, to a plate and leave to cool slightly.
- While the pork is still hot, hold 12 bamboo skewers as you would a fat pencil and prick the pork skin all over (or Nigel says, you can use a metal or wooden skewer, fork or sharp knife). Make sure to pierce right through to the fat layer. Flip it over.
- Combine the ingredients for the rub together in a small bowl and apply all over the meaty side of the pork, making sure to get into every crevice and avoiding the skin. Place the pork, skin side-up, on a wire rack set inside a roasting tray.
- Use a long sharp knife to scrape excess moisture away from the skin, and dab away with kitchen paper. Spread the 2 tablespoons of salt over the skin in an even layer and roast the pork for 40 mins. Keep an eye on the skin and if any liquid pools on the surface, dab it away with kitchen paper.
- Switch the oven to the grill setting and increase the temperature to 240C/475F/Gas mark 9. Peel off the layer of caked salt and dab the skin dry. Raise the pork so it is now 5cm from the grill element, keep the door ajar and grill for 10-15 minutes. If one area browns up faster than the rest, cover with foil. The pork is done when the skin forms layer upon layer of crackly bubbles. Cut into bite size pieces, and serve.
Five-spiced Pork Belly with Spring Onions & Sweet Soy
- Mix all the sauce ingredients with 150ml water in a bowl, then set aside.
- Put a medium-sized pan over a medium-high heat and fry the pork pieces cut-side down in a single layer until they are golden and singed like bacon. You should be able to see that some of the fat has rendered out. Flip the pork and keep sizzling until the underside is singed.
- Add the ginger and stir-fry until fragrant, then reduce the heat to low, add the sauce mixture and cover. Simmer for 4-5 minutes, then uncover. As the sauce reduces and the sugar caramelises, it will turn dark and syrupy. At this stage, add the spring onions and 1 teaspoon of water. Stir to wilt the spring onions slightly, then serve with the steamed rice.
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