Crisp Pork Belly with Sweet Peach Salsa

Poking around in my fruit bowl yesterday, I found a few peaches which needed using with a degree of urgency, so in trying to decide on my contribution for this week's Cookbook Sundays I turned to Nigel Slater's Tender, Volume II, A Cook's Guide to the Fruit Garden for inspiration.

This is a wonderful book, divided in to chapters according to fruit varieties.  Each chapter offers:  firstly, some general information about the seasonality, origins and history of the particular variety;  secondly, some information about growing the particular fruit and available varieties;  then, using the said fruit in the kitchen - how to ripen it, cook with it, and other great flavour companions;  and lastly, a selection of recipes.  Recipes are generally relatively simple and uncomplicated (my kind of food), photographs are gorgeous, and everything is written in Nigel Slater's inimitable style, which makes you feel as though he is right there in the kitchen having a chat with you.

Leafing through the chapter on peaches and nectarines, I found myself wishing that I had several kilos of peaches kicking around the house, as there wasn't a single recipe that I didn't want to try.  However, as I had just three peaches on hand, I had to narrow the search somewhat and, given my weakness for porcine flesh, I just knew that I was going to love this Crisp Pork Belly with Sweet Peach Salsa.

Pork belly is marinated in a paste of garlic, soy, chilli and Chinese five-spice, then roasted in a hot oven until the skin is crispy.  Nigel suggests marinating the pork for at least four hours, and maybe even overnight.  As it turned out, I only had two hours, but the flavour was still exceptional.  For the salsa, peaches (I used a combination of yellow and white peaches) and cherry tomatoes combine with chillies, limes and coriander, to make the perfect accompaniment to the pork.

Crisp Pork Belly with Sweet Peach Salsa Recipe

Adapted from Nigel Slater's

Tender II, A Cook's Guide to the Fruit Garden

Serves 4

Click here for a printable copy of this recipe

1 to 1.5kg (2 to 3 lb) pork belly, skin finely scored

Marinade:

3x cloves garlic

2 tablespoons soy sauce

1 tablespoon sunflower oil

2 teaspoons salt

generous pinch dried chilli flakes

1 teaspoon Chinese five-spice powder

Peach Salsa:

2x spring onions

1x small red chilli

3x peaches (white, yellow or a mixture of both)

(nectarines would be a good substitute if peaches were not available)

8x cherry tomatoes

small bunch of coriander (cilantro)

2x limes

3 tablespoons olive oil

Put the piece of pork belly into a shallow glass or china dish.

Peel the garlic, put into a mortar and pestle, sprinkle over the salt, and crush to a paste.  Add the soy sauce, oil, chilli flakes and Chinese five-spice, and combine everything well.  Spread this paste liberally over the skin and underside of the pork belly, rubbing it in well.  Cover with cling film and set in the fridge to marinate for at least two hours - longer if possible  Overnight is good if you have the time.

Preheat the oven to 220 degrees C (425 degrees F).  Place the pork in a roasting tin, skin side up, and cook in the preheated oven for about 20-25 minutes.  Reduce the oven temperature to 200 degrees C (400 degrees F), and cook for a further 40-50 minutes, until the skin is dark and crispy.  Remove from oven, and allow to rest for at least 10 minutes before carving.

Meanwhile, make the salsa.  Finely chop the chilli (feel free to de-seed first if you don't want the heat).  Finely chop the spring onions.  Peel the peaches, slice the cheeks off the stones, and finely chop the flesh.  Finely chop the cherry tomatoes and coriander.  Gently mix everything together in a bowl.  Squeeze over the juice of the limes and add the olive oil.  Toss everything again to combine.

Serve with the pork belly.  Steamed rice and bok choy make great additional accompaniments.

I'm sharing this recipe with Cookbook Sundays - do stop by and see what else is cooking.  Maybe you'd even like to dust off some of your own cookbooks and join in.

Pork Chops with Saffron Baked Potatoes

As I have told you here before, I eat a predominantly vegetable-based diet.  This has more to do with my preference for vegetables over meat, than any opposition to the killing and consumption of animals.  As long as humane practices are observed in the raising and killing of those animals, then I am not opposed to eating them.  I am also convinced that for most of us the consumption of some animal products - meat, fish, eggs and dairy products - are essential to maintain optimal health.  I know all the vegetarians and vegans out there would probably have a lot to say about that - say what you like - that is my belief (based on much research, reading and reflection, I might add) and I'm sticking to it.

Anyhow, I'm not about to turn this post into a lengthy dissertation on the rights-and-wrongs, pros-and-cons of eating anything - I'm just saying that I'm not that much of a meat-lover and I would happily sit down to a big bowl of vegetables or a beautiful bowl of salad, than a big, juicy steak, any night of the week.  I never think of vegetables or salads as side dishes - for me they are definitely the main event.

I've also got to tell you that, as long as pigs roam this earth, even if I wanted to I could never become a vegetarian.  As you already know, I think just about everything can be made a little better with bacon and, whilst that big, juicy steak might not excite me .... dangle a pork chop in front of me and I would willingly give up state secrets, absolutely no torture necessary.  You really need to know, up front, that if your life ever depends on my keeping schtum about something, you sure as heck better hope that my captors don't manage to come up with a pork chop!

I have a few favourite pork chop recipes that I love and frequently come back to.  The first is this recipe for Pistachio and Blue Corn Tortilla Crusted Pork Chops by The Enchanted Cook - I think this might have been the first recipe I discovered on Veronica's beautiful blog, and it was such a big hit around here that, not only have I made it several times since, but I have become a regular visitor at The Enchanted Cook - check it out, I'm sure you'll love it too.  Another favourite pork chop recipe that gets made often around these parts is this one from Nigella Lawson for Mustard Pork Chops with Gnocchi.

The recipe I'm sharing with you today, will definitely be added to that list of favourites, and I know I will be making it again many times over.  Potatoes are baked in a saffron and sage infused broth, while pork chops are baked on top of them allowing all that beautiful "piggy" flavour to permeate the potatoes.  The original recipe called for onions in here as well, but I used wedges of fennel instead, and added a few sage leaves - really, what goes better with pork than fennel and sage? - not much.  The original recipe is by Kate Nichols and comes from the November 2007 issue of Delicious magazine.

Pork Chops with Saffron Baked Potates Recipe

Adapted from recipe in

November 2007 issue of Delicious magazine

Serves 4

Click here for a printable copy of this recipe

1kg potatoes (I used red ones, cut into quarters lengthwise)

2x fennel bulbs, halved (quartered if they are large)

2 tablespoons olive oil

pinch saffron threads, soaked in 2 tablespoons boiling water

1-1/2 cups vegetable or chicken stock

salt & pepper

4x rashers streaky bacon, cut into strips

1 tablespoon olive oil

fresh sage leaves

4 pork chops

salt & pepper

extra sage for garnish

Preheat oven to 180 degrees C (350 degrees F).

Toss together the potato, fennel wedges, olive oil, saffron and its soaking liquid, and stock in a roasting pan.  Season well with flaky sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Heat the 1 tablespoon olive oil in a skillet over high heat, and cook the bacon until crisp.  Remove from the pan, using a slotted spoon, and sprinkle over the top of the potatoes in the roasting pan.  Tuck a few sage leaves in amongst the vegetables.

Season the pork chops on both sides with flaky sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.  Using the same pan you cooked the bacon in, over high heat, sear the pork chops for 1-2 minutes on each side until lightly browned.  Place the pork chops on top of the potato mixture, and bake until the pork is golden and the potatoes are tender - around 40 minutes.

Scatter a little extra fresh chopped sage over the top and serve.

I'm submitting this post to Magazine Mondays - mmmm, can't wait to see what else is cooking.  You can find last week's round-up here at "Cream Puffs in Venice".

         

I'm also submitting this post to the Hearth and Soul blog hop, a place where you'll find lots of wonderful people who are passionate about great food and cooking from the heart - do go and have a look at what they're all cooking this week.