Have you ever eaten pork belly grilled over hot charcoal? Have you ever stood in line solely to purchase roasted pork grilled over hot charcoal? Have you ever been disappointed when the stall owner said the roasted pork was sold out due to a big line? What a tense situation.
This charcoal-grilled meat is not exaggerated. It was not like baking in the oven. One of the meat meals I failed to create in the oven was the crispy roasted pork. The flavour is not as wonderful as the crispy pork roasted over charcoal. My husband and I decided to purchase a multi-functional charcoal grill at the end of 2019. During that time, the country was also on lockdown owing to a worldwide pandemic. This is one of the better methods to spend the time when on lockdown. This grill can cook three times the amount of meat specified in my recipe.
Three
textures should be present in a great roasted pork belly. The crispy skin will
be the first thing you notice. Second, you will notice the fat is soft but not
greasy, and third, you will notice the sweetness of the lean meat. It tastes
great. Isn't it simple? I cannot stand the heat of the grill. My husband had to
experiment three times before he figured out how to manage the grill's
temperature. He sat there for two hours to keep an eye on the temperature.
After one hour of grilling, the degree of charcoal burning fluctuates, need to
add charcoal to the grill. Even though it is a temperature-controlled grill,
controlling the grilled temperature is difficult. I am grateful to my husband for helping
me out to do the grillwork. That is, of course, what makes a charcoal grill more
enjoyable to operate.
The
marinating method is the same whether the meat is oven-baked or grilled over
charcoal. There are a few key measures that must be followed.
Why is
it necessary to blanch the pork?
The blood
and other impurities in the muscles and bones can be removed by blanching the
meat. Blanching the meat should take no longer than 10 minutes, or else the
nutrition and flavour will be lost. Furthermore, the pork must be cooked in
cold water. The protein in the pork will coagulate if you boil it in boiling
water. Blood and scents will not be able to escape.
It is
crucial to tenderize the pork skin.
The skin of
the meat within the grill will pop like a "firecracker" throughout
the roasting process. Therefore, we need to use a tenderizer to make as many
holes in the pork skin as possible. This step is necessary to ensure that the
skin does not just pop and develop little blisters, but also becomes crispy.
However, it also aids in the escape of air from the hole and the rendering of
fat onto the skin during roasting.
How do
you make crispy pork skin?
Pork skin has
a lot of moisture. So, before crisping the skin, we need to dry it as much as
possible. Before roasting, we need to sprinkle salt on the skin, allow the salt to draw out some moisture, and dry it in the fridge overnight before roasting.
Why is
it necessary to apply vinegar to the pork skin?
When you
look up a recipe online, you will see that most of them include vinegar. But I
used key lime juice instead because my husband's grandfather used it to roast
pork belly in the old days. The most common acids used to break down the meat
are vinegar and key lime juice, but lime juice is also acidic enough to do the
trick. Apply lime juice to the pork skin to soften it and make it crispier, as
well as to reduce the fishy scent.
Roasting at a HIGH temperature is required.
To attain
200 degrees Celsius, the temperature must be monitored. A home oven, of course,
can reach temperatures of 200 degrees Celsius. Even though the temperatures are
the same, the temperature of a charcoal grill is higher than that of an oven.
When exposed to a sudden burst of high heat, the skin becomes crispy and puffy.
How to slice the roasted pork belly
What is
the best way to eat roasted pork belly?
For the
crispiness, I prefer to eat it with dipping chili sauce when it is fresh. A
roasted pork burger, as described in my Steamed bun burger blog, is also an
option. Freshly roasted pork belly should be consumed the same day. The skin
will become chewy and unsatisfactory the next day. Leftovers stir-fried with dark
soy sauce or vegetables are frequently a favourite of the elderly. It is also
delicious with soup noodles.
INGREDIENTS
To blanch the pork
1. 1.7kg of
pork belly
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3. 2 inches
of ginger, sliced.
4. 1 tbsp
of cooking wine
To season
the meat
1. 2 tbsp 5
spice powder
2. 1 tsp white pepper3
3. 2 ½ tbsp Shaoxing wine4. 2 tsp salt for the meat.
4. 1 tsp salt for the skin
5. 2 tbsp
key lime juice
METHOD
1. To
combine the white pepper, salt and 5 spice powder will in a bowl, set aside
2. To
scrape away any impurities or hair with a knife. Place the pork, along with the rest of the blanching ingredients, in a pot filled with cold water and turn on the heat to high. Blanch for 10
minutes. remove it out from the pot, and thoroughly clean it. Dab dry with paper towels.
3. Poke as many holes in the pork skin as you can using a meat tenderizer or a fork.
4. Turn the pork meat side up and season it with the seasoning you made in step one. Rub all over the meat, so that everything gets down into the scores and the meat. However, not on the skin. The 5-spice powder will darken the skin otherwise.
5. . Turn the pork skin side up. Sprinkle 1 tsp of salt thoroughly on the skin. I am using kosher salt for this step. Allow for 20 minutes of resting time. You will see a lot of water drawn up out of the skin. Dab it dry and wipe off the remaining grains of salt. Apply a layer of key lime juice on the skin.
6. Place the pork skin side up on a tray and refrigerate UNCOVERED. Allow it to air-dry overnight in the fridge.
7. Remove the pork from the fridge and allow it to room temperature. Apply the key lime juice another time on the skin before roasting.
8. Preheat the charcoal grill until it reaches 200 degrees Celsius. Hanged the pork in the grill and roasted for 2 hours (for 1.7 kg pork) or until the skin has turned golden brown with multiple blisters.
Hope you find this guide useful and happy roasting!!
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