1½-2 kilogram piece boneless pork belly, skin on
olive oil
sea salt and freshly ground pepper
1 large onion, sliced
2 carrots, sliced
Preheat the oven to its highest temperature.
Score the skin at 1 cm intervals using a very sharp knife.
Place the onion and carrot in a single layer in a shallow roasting dish. Season the flesh of the pork and place skin side up over the vegetables. Rub the skin with a little olive oil and sprinkle generously with sea salt. Pour in enough water to just cover the vegetables. Don’t pour the water over the pork. Roast for 30 minutes.
Reduce the oven to 150˚C.
Roast the pork for another 1 hour, adding more water to the base of the dish if it starts to dry out. The pork should be really tender and a thin skewer inserted between the crackling should easily slip through.
If the crackling has not crisped enough, turn the oven to grill and cook for a few minutes but watch carefully as it can burn quickly.
1.5 kilogram piece boneless pork belly, skin on
½ teaspoon each ground fennel and cumin
olive oil
2 carrots, sliced thickly
2 onions, sliced thickly
12 small waxy potatoes, halved if large
4 cloves garlic, peeled and halved
3 bay leaves
small handful of fresh sage leaves
4–6 cups milk
sea salt and freshly ground pepper
Preheat the oven to its highest temperature.
Pat the pork dry with paper towels and sprinkle the flesh side with the combined fennel and cumin. Season with salt and pepper.
Place the carrots, onions and potatoes in the base of a roasting dish and add water to a depth of ½ cm. Season.
Place the pork, skin side up over the vegetables. Rub the skin with a little oil then season with salt only.
Roast for 30 minutes until the skin is bubbled and golden, turning the tray for even cooking and watching that it doesn’t catch and burn.
Reduce the oven temperature to 150°C.
Tuck the garlic, bay and sage leaves under and around the pork. Pour in enough milk to come halfway up the side of the pork but not up to the skin. Season lightly. Take care not to pour the milk over the crispy skin.
Braise for 1½ hours or until the pork is very tender when pierced with a skewer. If the skin needs more crisping, turn the oven to grill and cook for a couple of minutes but watch like a hawk as it can quickly catch and burn.
1.2-kilogram piece boneless pork belly, skin scored
olive oil
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon honey
1 tablespoon American mustard
1 tablespoon finely chopped rosemary
8 small agria potatoes, peeled and halved
6 medium parsnips, peeled and halved
2 whole garlic bulbs, top 1cm trimmed off
4 bay leaves
1 cup white wine
sea salt and ground pepper
Preheat the oven to 200°C fan bake.
Place the pork skin-side down in a large, lightly oiled roasting tray.
Combine the soy, honey, mustard and rosemary and season. Spoon over the flesh-side only. Turn the pork over and rub the skin with a little oil, then season generously with sea salt.
Toss the potatoes, parsnips and garlic bulbs with oil and season with salt and pepper. Place the potatoes around and under the pork and add the wine but don’t pour it over the meat. The parsnips and garlic get added later. Roast for 30 minutes.
Reduce the oven temperature to 150°C fan bake.
Add the parsnips, garlic bulbs and bay leaves and continue to cook for 2 hours or until the pork is very tender when pierced with a skewer. Turn the potatoes and parsnips once during cooking, adding a little more wine if needed.
If the skin isn’t crisp enough, place the roasting tray under a hot grill for a few minutes until golden and puffed. Watch it carefully as it can catch and burn very quickly.
To serve: Slice the pork and serve with the vegetables and the pan juices.
Cook's note: If the cores of the parsnips are quite woody, carefully cut the thickest part out with a sharp knife as they never become tender.
1 large fennel bulb, cut into thick wedges
2 large onions, thickly sliced
½ cup white wine
sea salt and ground pepper
1.2-kilogram piece boneless pork belly, skin scored and patted dry
1 teaspoon ground fennel
2 teaspoons olive oil
Preheat the oven to its highest temperature on fan bake.
Place the vegetables and wine in a large roasting dish and season with salt and pepper.
Sprinkle the flesh side of the pork with the ground fennel, salt and pepper. Place on top of the vegetables and rub the skin with the olive oil then sprinkle with sea salt.
Roast for 40 minutes, turning the dish halfway through cooking.
Reduce the oven temperature to 160°C fan bake and cook for
a further 40 minutes, or until the meat is very tender when pierced with a skewer and the skin is crackled.
Serve carved into thick slices with the vegetables and pan juices.