Creme Brulee Pork Belly Confit Recipe on Food52 (2024)

Mustard

by: Mandy @ Lady and pups

June19,2013

0 Ratings

  • Serves 5~7

Jump to Recipe

Author Notes

Applying Thomas Keller's technique for his pork belly confit onto this Asian char-siu twist, with a torched caramel crack on the top. Seriously sexy. More detailed photos here: http://www.ladyandpups.com/2013/05/20/creme-brulee-d-pork-belly-confit-eng/ —Mandy @ Lady and pups

What You'll Need

Ingredients
  • Pork belly and brine
  • 560 to 600 grams of pork belly, skin-on
  • 4 cupswater
  • 3 to 4 star anise
  • 4 cloves of garlic, smashed
  • 1/2 teaspoonground white pepper
  • 1/2 teaspoonblack peppercorn
  • 1/2 cupsalt
  • 1/4 cuphoney
  • To finish
  • 2 tablespoonspork fat, or oil for pan-frying
  • 4 to 5 tablespoonsGranulated sugar
  • Yellow mustard to serve
Directions
  1. Combine all the ingredients in “brining” except for the pork belly, in a pot. Bring to a simmer and let cook until the salt has completely dissolved. Chill the brine in the refrigerator until cooled. Place the pork belly in a zip-lock bag and pour the brine into the bag to submerge it. Rest the bag on top of a deep plate and leave in the fridge to brine for 6 hours. Make sure the pork belly is fully submerged at all time.
  2. Preheat the oven on 230ºF/110ºC. Take the pork belly out of the brine and rinse it clean of any scraps, then really pat it dry with a clean towel. Place the belly, SKIN-SIDE DOWN in an oven-proof container that’s just wide enough to hold the pork belly, and deep enough to allow 1? or 3 cm of room on the top. The better the fit of the contain, the less fat you’ll need to confit the pork (a square cake-pan is great). Heat up enough oil (I just used light olive oil instead of pork fat) to cover the pork belly by at least 1/2? or 2 cm, in a pot until warmed through (but not hot enough to cook the belly). Pour the oil into the baking container, then cover with aluminum foil.Confit the pork in the oven for 4 hours. It should be easy to pierce through with a fork.
  3. Carefully remove the pork belly out of the baking container with a wide spatula, WITHOUT breaking the skin or meat. Set the belly on the cutting board, skin-side up. Wrap a handful of wooden skewers together with tape. Pierce the skin ALL OVER with the tip of the skewers until you have made densely populated, mini holes throughout the skin. Do this GENTLY without breaking up the fat-layer underneath. I find it more efficient to move slowly from one side to the other, instead of random jabbing.
  4. Invert and place the pork belly SKIN-SIDE DOWN on a flat-bottomed baking dish. Cover with plastic wrap, then another piece of flat-shaped plate (the bottom of a cake-pan, or another baking dish) over the top of the pork belly. Rest something relatively heavy on top (2 cans, or a pot). Chill in the fridge for at least 12 hours, or until needed.
  5. Unwrap the pork belly and place it on a cutting board. The skin-side should be as FLAT as a GRANITE-FLOOR. Trim the pork belly, according to the shape of the skin, into very clean, even and straight-edged square or rectangle. Heat up approx 2 tbsp of the confit-fat in a wide, NON-STICK pan over medium-high heat. Carefully lay the pork belly, SKIN-SIDE DOWN on the pan then turn the heat down to LOW. Take a piece of parchment paper and rest it over the pan, with a opening on the side FACING AWAY from you. Trust me, the skin is going to mini-explode and splatter. The opening allows the steam to escape, but also retain enough heat inside the pan to warm up the pork.
  6. Leave the skin to crisp up over low-heat for 18 min, then REMOVE the parchment paper (we want to eliminate the moisture inside the pan now) and cook for another 5 min. Check the skin and see if the entire depth is blistered thoroughly. If not, keep cooking for another 5 min. It took mine about 30+ minutes. Once ready, turn the pork belly over to heat up the meat-side slighly, approx 1 min.
  7. Move the pork belly to a board, skin-side up. Cover the skin with an even layer of granulated sugar. It should be thick enough that you don’t see the skin underneath. Caramelize the sugar with a blowtorch until completely melted and browned. Let the caramel harden. Invert the pork belly with the crème brûlée-side facing down. Use a VERY SHARP KNIFE, cut through the meat-layer and once the knife hits the skin-layer, PRESS THE KNIFE DOWN hard until you hear a crackle and feel the knife has cut through the skin. Serve the crème brûlée pork belly with yellow mustard.

Tags:

  • American
  • Pork
  • Pork Belly
  • Mustard
  • Entree
  • Appetizer
  • Hors D'Oeuvre

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4 Reviews

Danny M. January 13, 2022

I feel there may be typos in the ingredient list. Is this supposed to be 560-600g pork? And 34 star anise? And 45 tablespoons of sugar?

Mandy @. January 13, 2022

Thanks for pointing it out! The “~” sign wasn’t shown :)

Aylonna W. May 5, 2014

luv, luv pork belly. tried this once and now can't stop. yummy!!!

dymnyno June 22, 2013

I have just got to try this!!!! Sounds amazing!

Creme Brulee Pork Belly Confit Recipe on Food52 (2024)

FAQs

How do you cook pork belly so it's not tough? ›

Preheat oven to 450°F. Roast pork belly for 30 minutes on the middle rack in a heavy, oven-safe pan or skillet, skin side up / fat side up. Reduce heat to 275°F and roast for an hour or more, until tender but not mushy. (Larger pieces of pork belly will take longer.

Should pork belly be at room temperature before cooking? ›

Remember to remove your flat pork belly joint out of the packaging, pat dry and bring to room temperature. Pre heat your oven to 200°C temperature fan assisted or 215°C without a fan.

What is boneless pork belly used for? ›

Just like the name implies, pork belly is the fatty cut of meat taken from the belly of the pig. When cured and smoked, it becomes the bacon we all know and love. When uncured and unsmoked, it's a versatile cut of meat that can be used in everything from sandwiches and sliders to this rich, satisfying adobo.

What is pork belly in culinary? ›

Pork belly or belly pork is a boneless, fatty cut of pork from the belly of a pig. Pork belly is particularly popular in Filipino, Hispanic, Chinese, Danish, Norwegian, Korean, Polish, Thai, and American cuisine. Pork belly. Uncooked pork belly.

Does pork belly get softer the longer it cooks? ›

This is a tough muscle, so it needs a longer cooking time at low heat to breakdown the tough tissue." So, to serve up good roast pork, budget for at least 3-4 hours in the kitchen. If done correctly, a piece of roast pork should be so tender you can pierce its flesh with a fork.

How to make pork extremely tender? ›

How do you make pork soft and tender? Soak your pork in a salt-based brine before cooking it using your desired method. Pork chops need to soak between 12–24 hours, an entire pork tenderloin needs to soak for 6–12 hours, and an entire pork loin requires 2–4 days of soaking.

Should pork belly be washed before cooking? ›

Washing beef, pork, lamb, or veal before cooking it is not recommended. Bacteria in raw meat and poultry juices can be spread to other foods, utensils, and surfaces. We call this cross-contamination. Some consumers think they are removing bacteria and making their meat or poultry safe.

How long does belly pork take to cook? ›

Pork belly needs a combination of slow, gentle heat to tenderise the meat, plus a shorter blast at a higher heat to crisp up the skin. Cook at 180C/160C fan/gas 4 for 2 hrs 15 mins, then turn up the oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6 for a further 35 minutes to crisp the crackling.

How do you know when pork belly is fully cooked? ›

Cook approximately 1.5 hours, though a lot will depend on the size of your pork belly. You want to cook until the internal temperature is 160-165°F. Remove meat from oven and remove salt crust. It should come off in pieces.

Why is pork belly so expensive? ›

It goes back to the elementary lessons of supply and demand. According to market analysis, pork bellies' supply is tight. The latest Cold Storage report by the USDA shows stocks of frozen bellies at a record low. Basically, the bacon stash is depleted, and it is time to restock the freezers.

What are three ways that pork belly can be cooked? ›

The videos below from the guys over at ChefSteps shows you how to cook pork belly using three different methods: braising in the oven, pressure cooking (with a nice sear to finish it off), and of course, this being ChefSteps, sous vide.

What is pork belly called in America? ›

So, streaky pork bacon is pork belly, but pork belly isn't bacon. Instead, pork belly is the whole slab cut from the fleshy underside of a pig. Streaky pork bacon is cut from this slab. Pork belly is unsmoked and uncured, while much bacon found in the U.S. can undergo a lot of processing—not ButcherBox bacon, though.

How do restaurants cook pork belly? ›

We soak the pork in water for about 20 to 25 minutes to wash away excess fat. Then we steam it for about 15 to 20 minutes until it's about 70% done. After that, we take it out of the water and poke holes in the pork with a needle and then rub it all over with salt and spices. Then we air dry it with a fan for 12 hours.

What's the difference between pork belly and pork stomach? ›

Pork belly isn't the stomach. Pork belly is the slab of meat from the underside or belly of the pig. It might not sound very appealing, but trust me, it's sooooo good! Here's what raw pork belly looks like.

How to stop pork belly from being chewy? ›

  1. Sous vide.
  2. This would mean placing the belly inside a special impermeable plastic bag, and vacuum sealing it.
  3. Next, the bag/meat is submerged in a water bath that is (for pork) at 63 C (145 F) for two or three days. ...
  4. After this amount of time, all “chewiness” will be gone.
Feb 21, 2022

How do I make sure my pork is not tough? ›

For fast, moist and juicy pork chops on the stove, here's what you need to know.
  1. Choose the right pork chop cut. ...
  2. Brining pork chops is not necessary. ...
  3. Rest the meat on the counter before cooking. ...
  4. Fat is key to keeping pork chops moist. ...
  5. Don't overcook the pork chops – and let them rest. ...
  6. Butter-basted pork chops.
Oct 26, 2022

How long does it take for pork belly to be tender? ›

The secret to cooking pork belly is the combination of a gentle heat to tenderise the meat and short, high temperature blasts to crisp up the skin on the outside. Typically, recipes call for around 2 hrs at 180C/160C fan/gas 4, then a further 30 mins or so at 200C/180C fan/gas 6.

Why do you pour boiling water on pork belly? ›

boiling water trick

This helps to prep the skin to crackle as its now "pre-cooked" so to speak. Make sure to pat dry with paper towel to further dry afterwards.

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