slow-cooked crispy chinese pork belly

I love pork belly. It's a great cut of meat with lots of flavour and is also one of the cheapest you can get.  I love it so much we're even serving it at my upcoming wedding. This recipe uses Chinese flavours to complement the richness of the meat and is great served with simple stir-fried greens and some steamed rice. There are no complicated techniques here or hard to find ingredients but you do need the time to allow the marinade to work and for the pork to slow cook.

Ingredients
1kg (approx) bone-in pork belly with the skin scored (you can use boned instead if you prefer)
1 onion cut into large slices
2 carrots peeled and cut into 2 or 3 pieces
2 sticks of celery cut into 2 or 3 large pieces
100/200ml cold water depending on method
Marinade:
1/2 tsp ground white pepper
1 tsp chinese 5 spice powder
3 cloves garlic, finely minced/grated
thumb sized piece fresh, peeled ginger minced/grated
1 tbsp vegetable oil
1 stick lemongrass
2 dried red chillies, finely chopped

STEP 1 - Marinade

1. Make sure the meat is completely dry and pat away any excess moisture with kitchen paper.
2. Mix together the marinade ingredients then spread evenly over the flesh side of the pork belly, working it into the meat.
3. Place the meat into a sealable plastic food bag. Bruise the lemon grass with the back of a knife or rolling pin then add to the bag with the meat. 
4. Put the pork belly in the fridge making sure it is safely away from cooked food and that no juices will drip from the meat then leave for at least a couple of hours or overnight to allow the flavours to develop.

STEP 2 - Slow cooking

Slowcooker Method

1. Put the onion, carrots and celery in the bottom of the slow cooker put the pork belly, skin side up, on top of the veg and pour in 100mls of water.
2. Put the lid on the slow cooker then cook the pork belly for around 6-8 hours on medium. You may need to adjust the cooking times depending on your slow cooker model.

Oven Method

1. Preheat the oven to 150C. Put the veg in the base of a roasting pan or casserole dish and then place the meat on top with the skin facing upwards. Pour in 200ml water then cover over the pan with either foil or the lid if you have one. 
2. Put the meat in the oven and cook for around 3 hours or until you can insert the blunt end of a spoon all the way through the meat.

STEP 3 - Crisping up

1. Once the meat has cooked using your chosen method you can either continue with the whole piece of belly and cut to serve later or cut into portions now. If you decide to portion it before crisping make sure you allow it to cool enough so that you can handle it. As you can see from the pictures I decided to keep the piece whole. I enjoy cutting through the crispy crackling when I serve it. 
2. Preheat the oven to 200C then transfer pork to a roasting pan then put in the oven to finish off for about 30 minutes or until you've got a nice crispy crackling top.
3. Serve with stir-fried broccoli, pak choi or similar and some steamed rice. 

I've entered this recipe into A Kick at the Pantry Door's 'Feel Good Food Challenge'. Why not take a look at all the other great recipes featured. 

slow cooker red cabbage

I made this to go with my blue cheese meatloaf but it goes well with many other dishes too. Red cabbage and apple is also a staple on my family's Christmas table too. I made this in a slow cooker but it could just as easily be made on the hob or in the oven, remember to keep it covered, cook on a low heat for a long time and check back every so often to make sure things are going ok.

Ingredients
1 small red cabbage, cored and finely sliced
2 eating apples, cored and cut into bite sized chunks
1 onion finely sliced
300ml stock (I used beef stock but use veg or chicken if you prefer)
salt and pepper to taste
1 tbsp honey
1 star anise
1 tbsp butter

Add everything to your slow cooker or saucepan then cover and cook for around 2-4 hours. I cooked mine on high in the slow cooker for 4 hours. I added the butter and honey to the hot stock, stirred then poured over the cabbage, apple and onion in the slow cooker.

slow roast shoulder of lamb with moroccan spices and salt cured orange

This is my first attempt at using my brand new slow cooker. I'm quite excited by the possibilities and couldn't wait to prepare some slow cooked meat. I apologise now if my blog gets a little overtaken with slow-cooking recipes. I'll do my best to not get too carried away. Anyways, whether you're a novice or pro slow-cooker I urge you to give this recipe a try. You could serve it with couscous but I decided to shred it and serve with flat bread and a range of side dishes including roast butternut squash and marrow slices, hummus, mint and garlic sauce and some sriracha too (I love that stuff).



Ingredients
1 kg half shoulder or leg of lamb
Rub
2 tbsp ras al hanout (check out this recipe for the spice mix or use shop bought)
1 tsp salt
1 tsp black pepper
1 tbsp honey or agave syrup
1 tbsp dried mint (don't even think about using fresh - it won't work anywhere near as well.)
1 salt cured orange, pith removed, sliced into quarters
2 onions, peeled and roughly sliced
2 sticks of celery, halved
2 carrots, peeled and halved

1. Mix the spice rub ingredients together and rub into the lamb making sure it is completely slathered in the mix. Cover and set to one side to marinate. I left mine overnight but an hour or so should do it. 
2. Put the carrot, celery, onion and orange into the base of a slow cooker and put the lamb on top. Add a cup of water then cover with the lid and leave to cook on low/medium for 6 -12 hours. You may need to adjust this depending on your slow cooker. It is ready when the meat pulls apart easily and is falling off the bone. 
3. When cooked, remove the meat from the slow cooker and when cool enough to handle pull the meat apart into smaller pieces.
4. Serve with hummus, roast vegetables, flat bread and yogurt and chilli sauces. 

goulash & kluski (homemade egg noodles)

If you're looking for something warming and tasty for your dinner this week you really should try out this recipe for goulash. I don't own a slow cooker but I'm sure you could easily make the soup/stew in it and add the noodles just before eating. It is well worth making your own egg noodles to go with this dish. They're really easy and have a lovely light texture that is perfect with the goulash. You could also add these egg noodles to any other soup or stew, they'd be particularly good in a chicken noodle soup (I'll post a recipe soon).





Ingredients

400 g stewing beef cut into bite sized pieces
2 medium-sized onions, finely chopped
2 tbsp oil

3 tbsp Hungarian Paprika (I didn’t have any so put together my own mix of 2 tbsp regular paprika, 1 tbsp sweet smoked paprika plus 1 tsp hot smoked paprika because I like a bit of a kick in my food)
1/2 tsp caraway seeds
2 cloves of garlic, minced, crushed or finely chopped
500ml beef stock
500ml water
1 green pepper, de-seeded and diced
1 red pepper, de-seeded and diced
1 x 400g tin of chopped tomatoes
1-2 carrots, peeled and diced
3 medium potatoes peeled and cut into chunks
salt and pepper to taste
Extra 1 tbsp. paprika

1 portion homemade egg noodles

1. Heat a heavy based saucepan over a medium high heat and add 2 tbsp oil. Saute the onions until they are translucent. Add the beef and colour on all sides.
2. Chuck in the paprika, caraway and garlic. Stir thoroughly so all the meat is well covered. The base of your sauce pan might get a bit gunked up at this stage. Don’t panic, just make sure it isn’t burning.
3. Next add the carrots and pepers, give them a good stir then add the tinned, chopped tomatoes. Give everything another good stir and break up the sticky bits from the bottom of the pan with your spoon.
4. Add the beef stock and water and continue to heat until just boiling. Now turn the heat down as low as you can, cover the pan and leave to cook for around an hour until the beef is completely cooked and almost falling apart.
5. Next add the potatoes and continue to simmer until they are soft and cooked through.
6. Season to taste and stir through the extra tbsp. of paprika.
7. You can serve the goulash as it is now with a dollop of sour cream or crème fraiche and some crusty bread or you can add some homemade egg noodles.

shredded beef brisket with crispy onions

This weekend I was in the mood for some slow cooking. When you've got the time it's great to do this, the flavour is amazing and it's a fantastic way to make the most of an inexpensive cut of meat. This method would probably work equally well with a pork shoulder or leg joint or even some lamb. I haven't tried it yet myself though.

Ingredients
800g beef brisket
2 tbsp worcestershire sauce
2 tbsp brown sugar
1 tbsp cider vinegar
1 tsp fennel seeds
1 tbsp smoked paprika
3 whole cloves garlic
2 whole star anise
2-3 bay leaves
5 Juniper berries
salt and pepper
2 onions, peeled and roughly chopped
1 small bottle of beer (I used Gulden Draak)

1. Heat the oven to 160C.
2. Put the onions in the bottom of a casserole dish or roasting pan. Generously season the brisket on both sides with the salt and pepper then place on top of the onions. 
3. Sprinkle over the fennel seeds, juniper berries, smoked paprika and sugar. Add the rest of the ingredients to the pan. The liquid should come about half way up the meat.
4. Cover with a lid or foil then cook slowly in the oven for around 3-4 hours. You will know the meat is done when it falls apart easily. During the cooking process I usually turn the meat over in the cooking juices a few times.
5. Once the meat has cooked, remove it from the oven and place the meat on a board, cover and leave to rest. Remove the whole spices from the cooking juices.
6. Either finely slice the brisket or shred with a fork, add to the cooking juices and thoroughly combine.
7. You can eat this with many accompaniments but we went for a ciabatta bread roll with some crispy fried onions and sides of potato salad and honey mustard coleslaw.

Crispy Fried Onions
1 medium onion, peeled and finely sliced
2 tbps cornflour or plain flour
salt and pepper
vegetable oil for frying

1. In a saucepan or deep frying pan add enough oil to deep fry the onion, around 1/4 cup should do it, but this depends on the size of your pan. Heat over a medium heat.
2. Place the flour in a shallow dish and generously season with salt and pepper. Add in the sliced onion and ensure it is thoroughly coated in the seasoned flour.
3. Check that the oil has reached the required temperature by dropping in a piece of the onion, if it gently sizzles the oil is ready.
4. Add in the rest of the onion, being careful not to over crowd the pan - you may need to do this in batches. Cook the onion until it has turned golden brown and crispy. 
5. Remove from the oil with a slotted spoon and drain on kitchen paper. 
6. Repeat this process until all the onion has been cooked.

slow cooked pork with ras al hanout, rosemary and salt cured orange

This is the first of, hopefully, an ongoing series of recipes from my sister. I'll ask her to introduce herself in a future post but in the mean time enjoy this delicious slow cooked pork recipe with a side of split peas.

Ingredients
2kg pork shoulder 

1 large onion
2 or 3 sticks celery
1 large carrot
1 salt cured orange pith removed (preserved lemons can be substituted)
3 large garlic cloves 

Spice rub:
2 tbsp ras al hanout mix
3/4 cloves
2 tbsp sugar
1 tbsp salt
1 tbsp black pepper
2 rosemary sprigs

1. Mix spice rub ingredients and rub over pork joint. Leave to marinade for at least a few hours - I leave overnight. 
2. Add roughly chopped veg, orange and pork to the slow cooker with water to reach half way up the joint. 
3. Cook on low-medium for 6-12 hours. It's done when it is tender and pulls apart easily. 
4. Served shredded or in large chunks with accompaniment of choice 
5. Good served with flat bread/wraps/rice/potatoes - I am happy with most carbs as a accompaniment to this recipe! 

 Split peas with mint, lemon and chilli
2 cups split peas
1 chilli
1 onion
2 garlic cloves
2 lemons (zest and juice)
Olive oil
Handful Fresh mint
Salt/pepper
Pinch of Paprika/ras al hanout 

1. Soak split peas overnight
2. Rinse well then place in large pan with lots of water 
3. Add 1/2 the mint, 1 chopped onion, 1 lemon zest, chilli, 
4. Boil for 10-15 mins uncovered then simmer covered until tender (approx 40 mins-1 hour) Can also be cooked in slow cooker. I did this for about 6 hours on med-high setting but they're done when soft.
5. Drain when done and add remaining mint (leaving a small amount back for garnish) lemon juice and zest, garlic, salt, pepper, olive oil 
6. You can leave chunky but I blend it then add pinch of paprika or ras al hanout and some mint to serve. 
7. Good warm as an accompaniment or cold as a dip or on toasted bread.

spicy dr pepper shredded pork

I discovered this recipe from the pioneer woman while searching the web for inspiration the other day and just had to try it. It looked and sounded like a great combination of flavours and very easy to do so here goes.

NOTE: If you can't get hold of the canned chipotle peppers in sauce, you could try using a tin of tomatoes, a good couple of tablespoons of spicy smoked paprika and some added fresh chillies (whole) or some chilli powder.

Ingredients
c. 2kg Pork Shoulder Joint. This is what I used.
2 cans of Dr Pepper
2 x 212g/7.5oz cans of Chipotle chilies in adobo. (I bought mine through amazon.)
1 large onion cut into quarters
salt and pepper

1. Preheat your oven to 150 C. 
2. Put the quartered onions in to the bottom of your pan and then put the pork shoulder joint on top. 
3. Next pour in the canned chipotle peppers and the Dr Pepper. Season with salt and pepper if you wish, put the lid on your dish then put in the oven. The aim here is to cook the pork long and slow so the meat eventually just falls apart. It will take around 6 hours for this happen. Turn the meat over every hour or so that all the meat gets chance to cook in the spicy, Dr Pepper sauce. 
4. Once the pork is cooked remove the meat from the pan and put on a plate and cover until needed.
5. A lot of fat will have been released form the pork shoulder, so unless you want this in your sauce I recommend you strain this off. It is easier to do this if you allow it to sit over night in the fridge and the fat will solidify at the top.
6. Once you have dealt with the fat (you may also wish to make the sauce smoother by blending it or passing it through a sieve), return the sauce to a saucepan and reduce down a little over a gentle heat. While this is happening use two forks pull the pork into shreds and then put in the sauce.
7. Once your sauce is at your desired consistency, I like mine quite thick, the pork is ready to serve. It will work brilliantly with jacket potatoes, in a sandwich with good crusty bread or as we had it, in corn tortilla with a little cheese and a crunchy salsa.