This twice cooked pork belly is prepared over a couple of days – well worth the effort though – I think – well, put it this way, it takes a while to make but not long to eat! I am really really sorry – the finished product did not get many photos – it was gone in no time (with the cries of “is there any more?”).

Ingredients

• pork belly
• 1 onion
• 8cm ginger
• 3 heaped teaspoons of crushed garlic
• 1 stalk lemongrass – bruised
• 3 red hot chillis
• 2 teaspoons of chili or chili flakes, or crushed chili
• 2 teaspoons smoked paprika
• 2 teaspoons dried oregano
• 1/2 cup plum sauce
• 1/2 cup ketjap manis (sweet soy sauce)
• 1/2 cup malt vinegar
• 1/2 cup rice wine vinegar
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 4 star anise
• 1/2 cup brown sugar

Day 1

Place the pork belly into the bottom of the slow cooker or pressure cooker. Combine rest of ingredients and pour over pork – you may need to add water if it doesn’t look like enough liquid.  Cook on slow cooker for 6 hours, basting with sauce as you go.  If cooking in pressure cooker use the pot roast setting and do 2 cycles.

Remove the pork from the sauce, place in dish, put another dish on top of it to weigh it down. Refrigerate overnight.  Strain and keep leftover sauce.

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Day 2

Cut the cold cooked pork belly into cubes. Line a baking tray with paper and place the pork on the tray. Baste the meat with the remaining sauce and then place the tray into a hot oven (210 deg C) and cook until golden.

While the pork is cooking in the oven, put on some rice or rice noodles and prepare the vegetables.

Put the leftover sauce into a pan and onto the stove over medium/high heat to thicken and reduce.

Serve with steamed asian vegetables, rice and sauce.