There is really nothing to this recipe and it always feels a bit like I’m cheating as there is no actual ‘cooking’ involved at all, just a piece of meat, rubbed with some spice and plonked in the oven.
However, it is one of the nicest ways of cooking pork belly, always well received and enjoyed by everyone who eats it.
The Five Spice Mix is a genius combination of eastern flavours and smells, instantly recognisable both in terms of taste and aroma. The heady combination of cinnamon, fennel, star anise, Sichuan pepper and cloves seems to have its own feel good factor and its hits the senses with a loud thud.
Try to find a nice thick bit of belly with a substantial piece of fat on the top. This not only makes for good crackling, but as the meat will be in the oven for quite some time, this helps to keep the meat deliciously tender and moist while it is cooking.
Make sure you score the rind well, ask your friendly butcher to do it for you if you find it a chore to find a knife sharp enough at home.
Serve with a dish of noodles or rice with some Chinese greens.
The onion in the recipe acts a trivet to stop the meat from sticking to the bottom of the pan, it doesn’t need to be peeled. Slice a large onion into about four rings.
- Belly of Pork (about 800g - 1kg)
- 2 tsp Chinese Five Spice Mix
- Salt
- 1 Large Onion, Thickly Sliced
- 1 Cup Water
- Preheat the oven to 160c
- Put the sliced onion in the middle of the bottom of a roasting pan, not much larger than the meat.
- Make sure the pork is nice and dry, wipe over with some kitchen paper to remove any moisture.
- Rub all over with the spice mix, getting into all the nooks and crannies.
- Sprinkle the rind with sea salt and rub in.
- Place the pork on top of the sliced onion.
- Cover the roasting dish tightly with foil, try to make a dome shape so it does to stick to the pork.
- Place in the oven and cook for 2 and a half hours.
- Raise the temperature of the oven to 220c.
- Remove the foil and cook for a further 20-30 mins to crisp up the crackling.
That is definitely my kind of cooking – rub it with herbs and spices, lob it in the oven and come back when it’s done! I do something similar with lamb shoulder, garlic and various herbs. It’s really easy – but everybody loves it.
I think I might have to give this a try. I’ve been looking for something with the Chinese 5 spice mix anyway and this looks to be just the job. Thanks for sharing it here.
Thanks for the comment Hamish. It is a great way to cook and doesn’t make it any less tasty. Let me know when you try it! Regards, Lindsey
I tried this now – and it was a partial success. The crackling was just a little too crispy – but I think that was because I used my halogen oven rather than the main oven. Next time I’ll drop the temperature a little I think. Even so, it still got eaten. Clean plates all round! Of course, “clean plates” isn’t so hard to achieve when you’re feeding teenage boys.
Thanks again for sharing this here. I had a look at some of your other recipes to get some inspiration. You certainly have plenty of good ones here. I don’t know whether to be jealous of your cuisine or your photography – the photos are all top quality too!
Thank you so much for coming back and letting me know how you got on. At least it wasn’t soggy crackling, glad it all got eaten anyway! Thank you for your kind comments, they are very much appreciated and make all the effort worthwhile. I haven’t got a flashy camera by any standards, it’s an old Sony Nex3 with the standard come with lens and even that is borrowed! Trying to save for one of my own but need new reading glasses first, and a new bathroom, and a shed! That’s life!!!
Tried this yesterday, but used Thai 7 spice instead of Chinese 5 spice. It was the best ever. One question though, where do you put the cup of water? 🙂
I was wondering about the cup of water as well. I got thirsty and drank it
Hi Jan, I missed your question from ages ago, please accept my apologies. The answer is, place the water in the base of the tin before covering the pork with foil.
Thank you for this recipe. The insructions and handy tips made this very easy to follow.
The end product was moist and delicious. The crackling came out perfect.
Thank you John. This has been and remains a real favourite in our household. We’ve had this in the depths of winter and the height of simmer. A real all-rounder.