No smoke on this one, but I wanted something similar to what I could get in a Chinese restaurant. I tried two different recipes and techniques that I saw on YouTube, and this one came out the best.
I started out with two small pieces of meaty pork belly, skin-on. Marinated the meat side, and then poked holes in the skin side. Easier said than done. The chefs on YouTube had a special tool to do that; it looked like a cocktail muddler with several thin nails protruding from the end. I couldn't even get a metal skewer or fork tines to penetrate. Finally ended up using a clean razor utility knife to jab little slits. The more holes, the better, as that makes it blister and puff up at the end.
The one in the foreground was the one I eventually went with. It was encased in a salt crust, that only effected the salt level a little. The upper one was a different recipe (no salt crust) and turned out so ghastly salty that I couldn't even eat it.
Prepped and then 24 hrs in the fridge for the skin to dry.
Baked for 45 minutes in the salt, then removed and set under the broiler for a few minutes to blister the skin.
Turned out very well. The meat was juicy, and the top nice and crunchy; not overly salty. The marinade turned the meat a darker color than you usually might see in pork belly.
I'm doing a larger version tonight for NYE.
I started out with two small pieces of meaty pork belly, skin-on. Marinated the meat side, and then poked holes in the skin side. Easier said than done. The chefs on YouTube had a special tool to do that; it looked like a cocktail muddler with several thin nails protruding from the end. I couldn't even get a metal skewer or fork tines to penetrate. Finally ended up using a clean razor utility knife to jab little slits. The more holes, the better, as that makes it blister and puff up at the end.
The one in the foreground was the one I eventually went with. It was encased in a salt crust, that only effected the salt level a little. The upper one was a different recipe (no salt crust) and turned out so ghastly salty that I couldn't even eat it.
Prepped and then 24 hrs in the fridge for the skin to dry.
Baked for 45 minutes in the salt, then removed and set under the broiler for a few minutes to blister the skin.
Turned out very well. The meat was juicy, and the top nice and crunchy; not overly salty. The marinade turned the meat a darker color than you usually might see in pork belly.
I'm doing a larger version tonight for NYE.
