Roast pork belly with apple and sweet potato mash

main
pork

Ingredients

  • 2 kg boneless pork belly
  • 50g (5 tbsp) five-spice
  • 5 large carrots
  • 3 granny-smith apples, peeled and diced
  • 700g potatoes, peeled and diced
  • 700g sweet potato, peeled and diced
  • 50g butter
  • 4 tbsp grain mustard
  • 2 limes
  • 3 tbsp capers, drained and chopped
  • Big bunch of coriander, chopped

Directions

  • Score the rind and fat about 1cm apart, being careful to not cut all the way down into the meat.
  • Mix the five-spice with an equal amount of salt and rub into the pork. Then place the pork in a tupperware so it’s just submerged in water and leave for 24-48 hours in the fridge.
  • After the brining has finished, heat the oven to 190. Place a sheet of baking paper on a rimmed tray, and place the carrots, cut in half long-ways, on top.
  • Place the pork on top of the carrots, skin side up. Pour 200ml of water on the tray, and roast the pork and carrots for 2 hours.
  • After two hours, remove the pork and place in the fridge. Keep the fat and carrots as well. At this stage the pork can be kept for up to 4 days.
  • On the day you plan to eat, turn the oven to 190.
  • To make the coriander mustard, simply mix lime juice, mustard, capers and coriander. Add a little oil if you want it smoother.
  • To make the mash, take the fat and and add to a pan with the butter. When the butter starts to brown, add in the apples and carrots and cook with the lid on low till the apple turns to mush.
  • While the apple cooks, boil the diced potato and sweet potatoes. Once the potatoes are ready, add the apple and mash. This mash can be made a bit early, and reheated when needed.
  • About 40 minutes before you want to eat, fry the portioned belly pork in a pan with oil till the skin get’s bubbly. Then flip the pork over, and put in the oven for 30 minutes.

This dish takes about three days - but it’s actually a really easy, and impressive, main to make. This recipe is a slightly modified version of one by Peter Gordon (a kiwi chef). The pork is first marinated, then cooked. It can be served immediately after the first roasting, but if you’re cooking it for a dinner party, it can be cooled, portioned into perfect rectangles, then reheated on the day.