Cumbrian BBQ Pork
"Belly pork is an all-time favourite of mine. It has so much flavour, plus it's a forgiving cut of meat as it’s not easy to over-cook. Just start it at a high temperature, then turn it down to cook for a few hours until tender and melt in the mouth".
This recipe was inspired by a trip to the USA, when I was asked to be a judge at a world barbecue championship in Lake Placid, upstate New York. The blend of flavours is sweet and smoky, with just a hint of aniseed that works so well with pork" - Peter Sidwell
Ingredients
- 2.5kg (5lb) belly of Cumbrian pork
- 2-3 tbsp olive oil
- 2 tbsp sea salt
- 2 onions
- 2 apples
- 1 star anise or 1 tsp Chinese five spice
- 2 tbsp maple syrup
- 2 tbsp ketchup
- 2 tbsp brown sauce
- 2 tbsp dark soy sauce
Procedure
- Preheat the oven to 220 °C/425 °F/ Gas Mark 7.
- Using a sharp knife, cut into the skin of the pork.
- Make around 10 cuts about 1cm (1/2in) deep, so that the flavour can soak right into the centre of the meat.
- Dry the skin using kitchen paper, as this will help it form some serious crackling - when you cook belly pork, crackling is what it's all about.
- Drizzle the oil on to the pork and rub it into the skin so it becomes shiny.
- Season well with sea salt flakes, opening up each cut to make sure some of the salt has got into the meat.
- Chop the onions and apples into chunks and put them in a roasting tray.
- Sit the pork on top, skin-side up and cook for 20–30 minutes until the skin starts to crisp up. Turn the oven down to 150 °C/300 °F/Gas Mark 2 and cook for 2-3 hours until the pork is tender.
- While the pork is cooking, make the barbecue glaze. Crush the star anise, if using, with a pestle and mortar.
- Mix the star anise or five-spice powder with the maple syrup, ketchup, brown sauce and soy sauce.
- When the pork is tender and the skin is crispy - after 2-3hrs - brush it with the sauce, making sure it gets into the cuts in the skin.
- Put the pork back in the oven for 20-30 minutes so the sauce caramelises and becomes sweet and sticky.
- When the pork is ready, please, please rest it before carving.
- Take it out of the oven, cover with a sheet of foil then place a tea towel over the top to keep it warm.
- When you have set the table and got everything else ready for your meal, then - and only then - cut the pork into thick slices and chop the crackling into pieces.