Don't Pass Up the Pork Belly

One of my favorite places to buy fresh meat is at the Meat House in Arlington Heights.  I was amazed at all they had to offer, not just at the counter, where I picked up two very thick, bone-in veal chops, but also in the back freezer.  Anything from bison ribs, venison, elk, game birds, boar, and pork belly - which may not be so exotic a find as alligator per-say, but not a common find at the local grocer. So on a whim, along with the fact it was $6.17 for almost 2lbs, I decided to buy it.  It sat in my freezer for about three weeks when I decided it was time to try out a recipe for roasted pork belly I had been eying in my copy of River Cottage Meat Book .

It was football Sunday, therefore another great opportunity to hole myself up in the kitchen. We had invited two of our friends over for football, well one of them came over for football; my friend Anya was lured with the promise of roasted pork belly. She is a foodie like myself and we very much enjoy going out to dinner as much as staying in and eating home-cooked meals - wine is generally involved as well, another like we have in common, one that goes so well together. 

Root Mashed Potatoes

My first preparation was that of the root-mashed potatoes, a recipe that originally came out of Inside America's Test Kitchen.  I have adapted the recipe to my own dietary needs and I am continually changing, as suggested in the book, the variety of root vegetables I add.

1.  I filled my Le Creuset 5 1/2qt. Dutch Oven with 2" of water (I did not have chicken stock on hand, normally I would use that instead of water).  I put in the pot:

• One large Sweet Potato cut into 2" cubes
• Two medium Gold Potatoes cut into quarters
• Three small-medium Parsnips, cut length-wise and then into half-moon shapes

 

2.  I allowed the mix to steam (about 45-55 min on low heat - the brilliance of Le Creuset ware is that it holds heat so well that you can simmer on the lowest flame setting on a gas stove).  You want the vegetables to be tender enough that you can easily pierce with a fork.

3.  I let the cooked vegetables sit on the stove with the lid on to keep hot until I was ready to mash - that moment came when the pork was ready rest, and the other side dish was about finished.  When that time came, I dumped the mix into a bowl and mashed away with a potato masher.  I did not drain out the liquid at the bottom of the pot; instead of using cream, milk, soy, almond milk etc. I decided to use the mild vegetable broth from the steaming, there was probably about a 1/2cp of liquid left.  I do sometimes use almond milk, which is great by the way if you are lactose and soy intolerant.  Almond milk is a much better substitute for a cream substitute - unlike soy, almond milk does not curdle when it comes in contact with acidic ingredients like onions.  I find that the Almond Breeze brand is light in flavor and has a nice creamy texture; I recommend this brand over other brands which I have found to have a bitter almond extract taste to them.

4. Once mashed, I mixed in fresh ground pepper, salt and fresh thyme to taste. Another add-in that is quite delicious is bacon (two thick slices from the butcher is all you need) as a garnish sprinkled on top.

To accompany the pork belly I made a Cranberry-Apple Sauce

You will need:

• 4 Granny Smith Apples (one apple per person), peeled and cored, sliced into 1/4" half-moons
• 1/2 cp fresh cranberries
• Zest from one orange
• Juice from half a lemon
• Cinnamon
• 1-2Tb of super fine sugar

1.  In my cast iron skillet, I mixed all the above minus the cranberries, and placed on medium heat until mixture was simmering, stirring regularly so not to burn the apples.

2.  I then lowered the heat and let cook with occasional stirring until the apple slices were soft, but not mushy; I then stirred in the cranberries.


3.  I let the cran-apple sauce lightly simmer, with occasional stirring until the apples were cooked to the point where they could be easily pierced with a fork and the cranberries were able to be mashed a bit.

This dish can be served at room temperature, but this time I simply reheated while the pork was resting.



Roasted White Asparagus

My heart was so full of glee when I came across white asparagus at the local Stop and Shop, it is a rarity there, so I jumped at the chance and bought a bunch.  I wish I had bought more and froze them, but hopefully they will soon return. White asparagus are milder in flavor and delicate, compared to the green variety.  The bottom of the stalks of the white asparagus, I find, do not require a fight in order to eat and digest.

My plan was simple and the result was a perfectly roasted vegetable side dish to join with the rich pork belly and and earthy root vegetable mashed potatoes.

In a shallow glass pie pan, I sprayed olive oil on the asparagus using my Misto, added salt and fresh ground pepper to taste, and chopped garlic.  The asparagus roasted in the oven at350F for about 18-20min; at the half-way point I rotated the asparagus.

Pork Belly:

You will need:

•  Fresh thyme
•  Sea salt
•  Fresh ground pepper

Pre-heat the oven to 425F; you will want to roast the pork belly at this temperature for 30min and then lower the temperature to 350F and continue to roast for about an hour.

1. With a sharp knife (or as suggested in the River Cottage Meat Book, use a utility knife) make multiple slices into the skin of the pork. Then rub the thyme, salt and ground pepper into the "pockets" of the skin .

2. Roast for 30min at 425F and lower to 350F until the juices run clear and the crackling (pork skin) is a golden brown.

3. Let the pork rest for at least 10 minutes before slicing and serving.  I kept the crackling on the pork, rather than remove it and serving it separately.