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mulled cider roasted pork belly
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Mulled Cider Roasted Pork Belly

Mulled cider roasted pork belly makes a great turkey alternative at Christmas. Tender, crispy & served with pear puree, this one's hard to beat!
Prep Time15 minutes
Cook Time4 hours
Chilling Time12 hours
Total Time16 hours 15 minutes
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: English
Servings: 6 People
Author: Ben Racey

Equipment

  • Large Roasting Tin
  • 2 Baking Tins
  • Medium Saucepan
  • Jug/Stick Blender
  • Wire Rack For Roasting

Ingredients

Slow Cooked Pork Belly

  • 1.5 kg Boneless Pork Belly
  • ½ tsp Table Salt
  • 500 ml Cider
  • 1 Orange
  • 2 Bay Leaves
  • 6 Cloves
  • 1 Star Anise
  • ¼ tsp Black Peppercorns

To Roast

  • 1 tbsp Vegetable Oil
  • Maldon Salt

Pear & Vanilla Sauce

  • 4 Conference Pears
  • 1 Lemon, Juiced
  • 50 g Unsalted Butter
  • 80 g Caster Sugar
  • 1 tbsp Brandy/Calvados
  • A Pinch Of Maldon Salt
  • 1 tsp Vanilla Paste

To Serve

  • 500 ml Christmas Gravy See Notes

Instructions

Slow Cooked Pork Belly

  • Dry the pork belly's skin with kitchen roll/paper then place onto a plate & leave in the fridge overnight, uncovered.
  • The next day, preheat an oven to 150°c/130°c fan (302°f/266°f).
  • Line the bottom of a large roasting tin with baking paper, set the pork belly on top, skin side up then sprinkle the ½ tsp of table salt all over the skin.
  • Next, pour the cider around the pork belly, making sure not to get any on the skin.
  • Cut the skin off the orange then add into the cider along with the bay leaves, cloves, star anise & peppercorns. Juice the orange & add a tbsp of juice into the cider as well.
  • Place a sheet of baking paper over the pork belly then cover the roasting tin with tin foil.
  • Cook for 3-3½ hours, until the pork is tender. If you insert a food probe or skewer into the meat, it will feel incredibly soft.
  • Take the pork out of the oven, remove the tin foil & top piece of baking paper then leave to cool for 20 minutes or so (it should be cool enough to handle but not completely cool).
  • Next, wrap the pork belly in a double layer of clingfilm then place into a baking tin. Place another tin on top then weigh it down with something heavy*.
    *Anything heavy will work (tins, bags of flour, etc.), as long as it weighs at least a couple of kilos.
  • Let the pork press at room temperature until cool enough to go in the fridge then refrigerate overnight (whilst still weighed down).

Pear & Vanilla Sauce

  • Peel & core the pears, cut into chunks then pour over the lemon juice & set aside.
  • Place the butter into a saucepan then set over a medium heat.
  • Leave to melt then add in the pears & cook until they start to colour, 3-4 minutes.
  • Add in the sugar, brandy/calvados & salt then lower the heat & cook until the pears are soft enough to puree, 5-10 minutes.
  • Remove the pan from the heat & leave to cool slightly.
  • Stir in the vanilla paste then blitz the sauce in a jug blender or with a stick blender until smooth.
    Pass the puree through a sieve, into a bowl then leave to cool. Refrigerate until needed.

Roasting The Pork Belly

  • Preheat an oven to 240°c/220°c fan (464°f/428°f).
  • Take the pork belly out of the fridge then remove the weights & unwrap the clingfilm.
  • Place the pork into a roasting tin (skin side up), on a wire rack then coat the skin with 1 tbsp of veg oil. Sprinkle a generous amount of Maldon salt all over the skin then roast the pork in the oven for 30-40 minutes until the crackling is golden brown & crispy.
  • Leave to rest for 10-15 minutes, cut into thick slices then serve with the pear sauce.
    A sharp, serrated knife works best for slicing!

Notes

1. Cooking In An Aga - To slow cook the pork, place the roasting tin on the bottom set of runners in the baking oven then place a cold plain shelf two runners above. To roast the pork belly, cook it in the roasting oven on the second from top set of runners for 30-40 minutes.
2. Pork Belly - Ask your butcher for a 1.5kg boneless pork belly (unscored). If the removed bones have been included with your pork, sit the pork belly on top of them in the roasting tin, to slow cook.
3. Cider - Pretty much any cider will work for this recipe. I used pineapple Rattler from Cornwall.
4. Pressing - When pressing, make sure that the weight is pressing the pork belly flat.
5. Storage - Once cooked & pressed, the pork belly will keep in the fridge for up to 3 days. Once roasted, it should be eaten immediately. 
6. Gravy - This pork belly goes great with our Christmas gravy recipe. 500ml will easily serve four portions of pork...