Chow down on Chilean marinated pork belly
If you’re anything like us, you’ve spent many an evening watching SBS in awe as Maeve O’Meara traverses the globe on her spectacular culinary journeys. Through her show Food Safari she explores the cuisines of the world, and her latest book Food Safari Fire specifically looks at the creative ways that different cultures cook with fire using age-old techniques and food. The book features everything from Croatian baked octopus to traditional Argentinian asado, and tips from home cooks, pit masters and renowned chefs such as Guy Grossi and Frank Camorra. This summer, play with a little fire and try your hand at Nelson Burgos Chilean marinated pork belly cooked over coals.
INDREGIENTS
6 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
1/3 cup salt
1 tablespoon sweet paprika
2 tablespoons smoked paprika
100 g dried oregano
50 g ground cumin
50 g merquen (a Chilean spice similar to dried and smoked chilli flakes)
150 ml white wine vinegar
2 kg pork belly, excess fat trimmed, ribs still attached and split down the middle (but not all the way through)
TO MAKE
Place the garlic and salt in a mortar and pestle and crush until coarse.
In a mixing bowl, combine the garlic and salt with the paprika, oregano, cumin and merquen. Slowly add the vinegar and set the marinade aside.
With a sharp knife, carefully take off the skin and excess fat from the pork belly. You can ask your butcher to do this for you. Score the fat side of the belly and in between the ribs, and place in a large baking tray. Pour the marinade over the belly and rub in well all over.
Leave in the tray, cover and refrigerate overnight (or up to 2–3 days if you can).
Ensure you bring the meat to room temperature before cooking. Remove the pork belly from the marinade, reserving the juices for basting.
Cook over coals over low heat – around 150–200°C – for 2.5–3 hours, starting bone-side down, turning every hour or so to ensure even cooking. Baste regularly with reserved marinade. After about 2 hours, split the ribs down the centre and continue to cook until ready – about 30 minutes to an hour. You want the pork to be golden.
Carve into the ribs and serve with pebre. Enjoy with a glass or bottle of red!
Note: If you don’t have a charcoal grill, put the pork in a roasting tray and bake in a 170°C oven for 2.5 hours, basting the pork every 15 minutes.
This is an edited extract from Food Safari Fire by Maeve O’Mara published by Hardie Grant and available in bookstores nationally and on cooked.com.au.
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