Easier Way to Chinese Crispy Pork Belly

Every time I go to a dim sum place, I'm always looking for Chinese crispy pork belly. Just love that crunchy skin with greasy-free fat underneath combo, and super satisfying to hear it crackles when biting into the meat. Surprisingly, it's not that hard to make at home. It's not going to be as delicate as restaurant version, especially we're trying to keep it simple, but that crunchy touch stays strong.

Chinese crispy pork belly -

Ingredients?

• 450 grams pork belly (with rind)
• 8 garlic cloves
• Some Chinese five-spice powder
• Good amount salt

How?

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit/176 degrees Celsius. Prepare a large baking dish with some water, it'll catch the greasy dripping and provide steam during the roasting process. Transfer baking dish to the lower section of the oven.

Wash and pat dry the pork belly, as dry as possible. Cut a few horizontal slits under the skin/rind. Insert peeled garlic cloves deep inside. It'll take some practices here, and the garlic cloves need to get pushed very deep inside. 

The picture I have here, the cloves didn't get pushed in deep enough, which might fall out during the roasting process. Not a big deal since not much flavors get lost, but it's always better to keep the garlic cloves inside pork belly whenever possible.

Rub the meaty part with Chinese five-spice powder, all around expect the top rind area. Add generous amount of salt over the rind, and gently pat it down to form a thick salty layer. Transfer the pork belly to the rack and into the oven, above the baking sheet with water, roast for one hour. 

Take out the rack and remove that salt crust, it'll come right out like thick crackers. 

Raise the oven temperature to 465 degrees Fahrenheit/240.5 degrees Celsius, continue to roast the pork belly for about 45 minutes.

Remove from heat, remove the garlic cloves, and slice pork belly into bite size pieces.

There's no need to prick holes on the rind for this recipe, not absolutely necessary, and the end result still quite satisfying. Also since tons of salt was added to form a crust, I bought a cheaper version of salt for this purpose, trying to be more economical. By the way, cheaper salt can also be added to boiling water when cooking pasta.


Other oven-roasting recipes:

• Oven-roasted chicken with peri peri sauce
• Lemony roasted chicken legs