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A small plate of neatly lined crispy pork belly with green chilis dipping sauce.
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5 from 1 vote

Crispy Pork Belly - Chinese Roast Pork

Learn how to make Crispy pork belly just like in the Chinese BBQ Meat Shop! Complete with video and secrets to make the skin crackling!
Prep Time1 day
Cook Time3 hours
Total Time1 day 3 hours
Course: Dinner, Lunch, Main Course, Side Dish
Cuisine: Asian, Chinese
Servings: 800 gr
Calories: 7kcal
Author: Claudia

Equipment

  • 1 oven

Ingredients

  • 1 kg pork belly 5 layer

Seasoning

  • 1-2 tsp fine salt
  • 1 tsp sugar
  • 1 tsp pepper
  • ½ tsp mushroom powder optional

Skin

  • 2 tbsp vinegar
  • ¼ tsp fine salt
  • ½ tsp baking soda

Green chili sauce

  • 30 gr fresh green chilis
  • 1 garlic
  • 1-2 lime wedges
  • 50 ml water
  • ½ tsp salt
  • 2 tsp sugar

Instructions

  • Prepare the pork belly. Clean the skin with knife to remove any leftover fur with a torch if there is any.
  • If the pork belly is straight from the freezer, no need to thaw it because you’re going to boil the skin right away.
  • Boil some water, enough to cover the skin part. Put the skin facing down in the boiling water. Boil it for 5 minutes.
  • After 5 minutes, take out the pork belly and soak in a clean water. This is to let any leftover blood in the meat come out. Soak for 5 minutes and take the pork belly to the working table.
  • Prepare some kitchen towel on the working table. Put the pork belly, skin facing up.
  • Dab the skin with kitchen towel to remove excess water.
  • Use fork or meat tenderizer to poke the skin. Do not poke too deep. Just poke for 5 mm. If you poke too deep, the fat layer under the skin will ooze out the fat while roasting. This can prevent the skin from puffing up while roasting.
  • After drying the skin with the kitchen towel, turn the pork belly upside down. Cut the meat lengthwise and in the middle. Do not cut through the skin. Create crevices deep enough to let the seasoning go through. This will also help you cut the pork belly easily later after it is done.
  • Get ready with the seasoning: salt, sugar, pepper and mushroom powder. Mix well.
  • Use a teaspoon to put the seasoning in the meat  crevices and every corner of the meat. Do not apply to the skin. Just apply to the crevices you made before. Rub it all and massage so the seasoning can be absorbed evenly.
  • Prepare aluminum foil to wrap the meat. Wrap the meat part with the skin unwrapped.
  • Make a rectangular shape following the shape of the pork belly with the aluminum foil.
  • Dab the skin with kitchen towel. Make sure it is clean from the seasoning.
  • Now let’s mix the skin potion. Mix salt, baking soda, and vinegar together. This mixture will help make the skin crunchy and crispy but not hard.
  • Stir well until the bubble subsides. Make sure there is no baking soda residue in the mixture. Apply using a brush on the skin only. You can brush it a few times.
  • Put the pork belly in the chiller for at least 6 hours or better overnight. Do not cover the skin. This is drying up process. The next day, take out the pork belly. You can process it right away.
  • Preheat the oven at 160°C. The oven I use is convection oven with a fan.
  • Apply coarse salt on top of the pork belly so it covers the whole skin. Try to apply it as dense as possible. Do not apply too thick as it won’t be necessary. The salt will absorb moisture underneath the skin. It will not make the skin too salty. So don’t worry!
  • Put on a tray and start roasting in the oven. Place it in the middle rack and roast for 25 minutes.
  • After 25 minutes, take it out and start scraping the salt gently and clean up with kitchen towel.
  • Apply another brush of baking soda, salt, and vinegar. This time only a pinch of salt, a pinch of baking soda and 1 tbsp of vinegar. Always wait until the bubble subsides and apply.
  • Put it back into the oven. Roast for another 25 minutes.
  • The vinegar will not make the skin taste sour. It will help absorb the water content.
  • After 2x25 minutes, turn up the oven to 200-250°C. Roast and check for every 15 minutes. You may want to rotate the pan every 15 minutes.
  • The skin will start crackling. I like to watch in amazement as the ugly rubbery skin starts to puff and crackle! Even the crackling sound is so beautiful to hear. It is really nice to hear that!
  • The total roasting time until you see the skin is all crackling and crispy is 45-60 minutes.
  • After it is done, take it out from the oven. Let it cool inside the pan for 30 minutes. The meat will absorb the juice in the aluminum foil and the skin will settle for its crispiness and crunchiness.
  • After 30 minutes, take it out from the aluminum foil. You can start cutting the pork belly following the lines that you made in the beginning.
  • For the green chili sauce: bring the water to boil. Put fresh green chilis and garlic into boiling water. Do not let the green chilis turn dark, so when the water simmers for a while, take out the chilis. Blend them all together. Serve the crispy pork belly with green chili sauce and coriander leaves.

Video

Notes

  • No thawing needed – If your pork belly is frozen, you can skip thawing since you’ll boil the skin right away.
  • Vinegar isn’t for flavor here – It won’t make the skin taste sour. It simply draws out moisture. Combine it with rock salt or fine sea salt for maximum drying power. This won’t make the meat too salty.
  • Let the bubbles settle – When mixing baking soda with vinegar, let the fizz subside before brushing it on. This avoids any bitter taste and helps keep the skin both crispy and soft.
  • Parboil just enough – Boil the skin for only 5 minutes. This makes it soft enough to prick without breaking. Overboiling can make it fragile.
  • Prick, don’t pierce – Aim for just 5 mm deep when pricking the skin. Too deep and the fat will leak during roasting, which prevents puffing and blistering.
  • Two applications of the magic mix – First, before refrigerating overnight. Second, after removing the salt crust.
  • Fridge drying is key – Leave the pork belly uncovered in the fridge overnight. This air-dries the skin and helps it blister beautifully in the oven.
  • Watch for uneven puffing – If a patch isn’t blistering during the high-heat stage, rotate the pan and give it a few extra minutes.
  • Mind the salt layer thickness – Dense but not overly thick, too much salt can slow down the drying process under heat.

Nutrition

Serving: 100gr | Calories: 7kcal | Carbohydrates: 0.02g | Protein: 0.1g | Fat: 1g | Saturated Fat: 0.2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 0.3g | Cholesterol: 1mg | Sodium: 6mg | Potassium: 2mg | Fiber: 0.001g | Sugar: 0.02g | Vitamin A: 0.2IU | Vitamin C: 0.01mg | Calcium: 0.1mg | Iron: 0.01mg