Crispy Juicy Slow Roasted Pork Belly

Square pieces of slow roasted pork belly on a wooden serving platter.

5 from 1 vote

Crispy Juicy Slow Roasted Pork Belly

Incredibly succulent, juicy meat, perfectly crispy crackling, and just 10 minutes of hands-on prep? This gorgeous slow-roasted pork belly is truly something special. A simple five-spice rub and a long, slow roast do most of the work. Served with a sticky spiced plum sauce, it's a very lovely centerpiece for a Sunday lunch, dinner party, or Christmas feast.

Prep Time10

Cook Time4

Total Time4 10

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Asian-inspired

Keyword: crispy pork belly, pork belly, roast pork

Servings: servings

Calories: 635kcal

Author: Kate Phillips

Ingredients

For the slow roasted pork belly -

2 kg Boneless, skin-on pork belly (4.5lb)
2 tablespoons Chinese 5 spice
3 tablespoons flaky salt

For the sticky plum sauce -

400 g fresh plums
1 cinnamon stick
2 tablespoons fish sauce
3 whole star anise
⅓ cup superfine (caster) sugar
½ cup red wine vinegar
2 tablespoons honey

Instructions

Prepare and marinate the pork belly.
Mix your Chinese 5 spice with 1 tablespoon of flaky salt. Place the pork belly in a large oven dish, skin side down. Rub the mix all over the flesh side of the pork belly. Turn it over, then wipe off any spice mix that might have found its way onto the skin.
Using a very sharp knife, slice thin lines into the pork skin, being careful not to cut too deeply and into the meat (skip this step if your butcher has already scored the skin). You want to score the skin so the fat can bubble up to the top and help create crackling. It's also super important that the skin is dry at this point, so pat it down with paper towels. Sprinkle another 2 tablespoons of salt onto the skin, and rub it all over.
Place it in the fridge uncovered, ideally overnight (or at least 3 hours).
Roast the pork belly.
When you're ready to cook, remove the pork belly from the fridge and heat your oven to 150°C fan (170℃ or 340°F conventional). Pat dry any wet spots on the skin. Prepare a large wire rack above an oven dish, and brush the rack with oil. Carefully place the pork on the rack, skin side up, then transfer it to the oven for 3 hours.
Make the sticky plum sauce.
Halve your plums, then remove the stones. Add the plums to a pot with the cinnamon sticks, fish sauce, superfine sugar, red wine vinegar, star anise, and honey. Set the pot over medium heat and simmer until the sugar dissolves and the plums are soft, about 15 minutes. You want them to keep their shape if possible, so don't stir them too much. Remove the cinnamon stick and star anise, then set aside.
Crisp up the crackling.
After 3 hours, the pork should be super tender. Now we're going to finish it off and get that lovely crispy crackling. Turn the oven up to 200°C fan (220℃ conventional or 425°F conventional) and roast for another 40 to 60 minutes until the skin is blistered and crispy all over. Start checking after 40 minutes, and keep an eye on it as the crackling develops.
Garnish and serve.
Remove the pork from the oven. Let it sit for about 10 minutes before slicing and transferring the pieces to a serving plate. Spoon a little of the sticky plum sauce over the crispy pork pieces, and serve the rest of the sauce on the side.

Notes

While this recipe takes time, the actual hands-on time is minimal, making it great for feeding a crowd on special occasions.

The sticky plum sauce can be three to four days in advance and stored in the fridge - just bring it back to room temperature or gently heat it before you serve.

The best way to get nice, tidy square pieces of pork belly is to have a very sharp knife! Use the scoring lines as your guide to firmly and confidently cut through the crackling, then go straight down through the tender meat. If you're finding it hard to cut through, flip it over so it's crackling side down, then slice through the flesh first.

Nutrition