Hi all,
This is a Chris Lilly recipe, I have tweaked it slightly to make it easier and more practical.
So we have a Brine, low/slow, confit and glaze all in this recipe....enjoy
First off your going to have to Brine this overnight, I used a 2kg pork belly here....
Here is the ingredients
HONEY MUSTARD GLAZE
1/4 Cup of wheat beer
15 ml balsamic vinegar
15 ml white vinegar
1/4 Cup black mustard seed
1/2 tspoon salt
pinch of ground pepper
the next 4 spices you just need a bee's dick of each
Allspice, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg all ground
220ml of honey
Pour all ingredients into a bowl EXCEPT THE HONEY. mix, cover and let the mix sit at room temp until the mustrad seeds soften 1-2 days
(Get this started when you start your brine, allow your Mustard seeds enough time to soften)
After 2 days......
Pour mixture into a food processor and puree, pour in honey and mix. Store in an airtight container. We will use this glaze at the end of the cook.
PEACH TEA BRINE
2xbottle of Snapple peach Tea (you will fond this at woolies)
1/2 cup of salt plus + extra 3 tablespoons
1/4 cup of sugar
4 garlic cloves, crushed
4 sprigs of thyme
2 rosemary sprigs
2 bay leaves
2 teaspoons of ground black pepper
**TIP** This is the optimal time to find a baking dish which you will put this into later on when we use confit.
Keep in mind, you want it small enough to just fit the pork but deep enough to completely cover the pork when we pour the Lard over it.
With the baking dish, put the pork in it and pour water over it, submerge it so it is half to 3 quarts of an inch above the pork.
Pour the water out into a measuring bowl, make a note of this....you'll need that much of lard, buy extra just incase.....I did not do this prior and made a guess....
I was wrong
Mix all into a saucepan, Bring to a boil, simmer for 10 minutes and allow to reduce slightly.
Remove pan from heat and allow to cool for a half hour.
Strain and allow liquid to cool right off before using. Place pork and brine in a zipbag or bowl over night.
Ok here is the dry rub
1/4 Cup Sugar
1 Tspoon Chilli Powder
1/2 tspoon Salt
1/4 tspoon ground cumin
1/4 tspoon Cayenne Pepper
Take the Pork out of the brine and give it a wash down with tap water.
Mix this rub ingredients up in a bowl, than rub all sides of the belly EXCEPT the skin.
Get your indirect going and try to keep the heat between 225F-275F
Use your choice of smoke, I used peach.
Put the belly skin side down.
Cook until internal temp reaches 155F (The pics above were taken when it went in, note the dry rub had begun to melt)
Ok, you have reached 155F. Now transfer the pork into your pre-selected baking dish, skin up. Heat and melt your lard in a pot. pour over the pork until it is submerged by atleast half an inch.
Continue to cook over indirect heat, lid on.....you want internal temp of pork to reach 205F-210F....In hindsight I would do this step in an oven as the the belly is now completely covered and i doubt you are infusing much, if any flavor to it from the coal.
I did do mine in the Weber, I continued to keep the temp of the Weber at about 225F-275F
As you can see, pan was to small.....the next size up was too big and I did not have enough lard..... but the campaign continued
Remove the baking dish from the Weber and allow it to rest. once it is cool enough to handle wrap in gladwrap.
Now, this next step is up to you, I done it.....in a dodgy way....but that's just my jam.....
You need to know either place another pot or dish over the belly and press it down with some bricks, this is to get the layers of belly more uniform...up to you...
Attempt 1..........ummmm yeeeeah na!!...
attempt 2......betterer...under my shirt this was gladwrapped, yes some spilled over the side....hence get a big enough Baking dish aaaaalllllll those steps prior and avoid this mess...
Note the lard oozed out.....my 'national lampoons' shirt soaked up allot of the mess which was a bonus, I guess
Into the fridge over night.......
Next day....hmmmm lard...yuuummo..
I just flipped the whole lot out in one piece from the baking dish into a sink. break off all the lard, be gentle, although your belly is cold it is tender, bits will snap off if your rough.
With a sharp knife, peel away the skin, keeping as much fat on there as possible. cut into 2.5 inch squares.
Ok, get the Weber cranked right up,
Put a skillet over the direct heat, close the lid and wait till the internal temp reaches around 450F
put the belly, fat side down on the skillet, keep an eye on this, you want to caramelize the fat, looking for a nice light brown.
now pull the pan to the side of the Weber (indirect) and cook for a further 8-10 min with lid on.....remember, the belly is cooked we are now just searing, re-heating and glazing.
After the 8-10 min, pull the pan with the belly out of the Weber, take the belly out of the pan and glaze with the HONEY MUSTARD GLAZE, add another chunk of wood for smoke, place back in the weber fat side up.
Cook for a further 5 minutes....enjoy...
Yep......a mate and I ate one while waiting for the misses to get her end sorted...
Cheers....