Slow Roasted Pork Belly

Serves: to serve 6

Prep Time: 10 Minutes

Cook Time: 4 Hours 20 Minutes

Ready In: 4 hrs 30 mins

3¼ lb - belly pork (pork belly)

several handfuls - coarse sea salt

First of all, it's vital that you score the skin on the joint (or get your butcher to do it for you). Best is to use a very sharp pointed knife to draw straight lines through the fat, but try not to go all the way down to the meat.
Then you need to use absorbent kitchen paper and blot the entire joint, getting it as dry as possibly. Water will stop the skin from crackling (which is also why it is best to get your pork belly from a butcher since commercial joints are injected with huge amounts of water and other additives). Then rub the skin side (and in to some of the cracks) with coarse sea salt and pat it in place.
Place the joint, skin side up, on a baking tray (baking sheet) and cook in a preheated very hot oven (Mk 9 - 475ºF - 240ºC) for 20 minutes. Reduce the heat to Mk 1 - 275ºF - 140ºC and cook for a further 3½ hours. Remove from the oven and, using a long, sharp knife, remove the crackling from the top of the joint. Put the joint back in the oven for a final ½ hour.
After a total of almost four-and-a-half hours cooking (why do you think it's called Slow Roasted Belly Pork??), remove the joint from the oven and allow to stand for ten minutes. Meanwhile, either return the crackling to the top of the oven and set it on very high, or place it under a hot grill (broiler). Leave it a few minutes to turn into really crisp, crunchy crackling.
When your crackling is done stand it to one side to cool a little. Meanwhile pull the meat apart with two forks and arrange on a serving plate. Break up the crackling in to bite-sized pieces and arrange those on the platter too.
Now you need to make a decision what you are going to serve it with!! You can either go the traditional way with lots of delicious vegetables or you can be diabolically decadent and make hot pork and cranberry rolls!
If you go down the second avenue, you'll need to have made some Cranberry and Apple Sauce while the meat was cooking, and you'll need half a dozen or so soft bread rolls. Just spread the Cranberry and Apple Sauce on to the rolls before filling them with the deliciously juicy meat. You can also use the Cranberry and Apple Sauce as a dipping sauce for pieces of crackling.