You can’t go wrong with a decent pork belly recipe. But when it is my favourite twice cooked Asian pork belly recipe, you will be in pork belly heaven.
The recipe is based on one I discovered by Bill Granger a long time ago. His pork belly wasn’t cooked twice and the inspiration for my orange caramel sauce was his recipe for caramel vinegar.
I have wanted to share this recipe with you for a while as it is one of my family’s favourites, and has been for what seems eons.
The caramel coats the crunchy pork belly during the second cooking. This results in a wonderful sticky, crunchy, sweet and savoury combination that you really can’t help but gorging yourself on.
Over the years I have tried this recipe with different vegetables, but none work as well as the snake beans. In fact if I can’t get my hands on snake beans I don’t make this dish. I have tried common green beans when snake weren’t available, but they just don’t work. They don’t hold their texture and crunch as well, and they also change the taste of the whole dish completely. This recipe is all about texture as well as taste.
The beauty of this dish is that you can make the orange caramel sauce a day ahead as well as the pork belly. Which is perfect for entertaining mid week. All the time consuming work is done. You just have to make a basic stir fry when you are ready to feed your guests, and you end up with a restaurant quality result.
Twice cooke Asian Pork Belly with Snake Beans and Orange Caramel Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 kg pork belly bones removed skin scored
- 3 tablespoons salt
- Olive oil
- salt extra & cracked pepper
- 2 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 1 long red chili finely chopped
- 3 cloves garlic finely chopped
- 10 grams ginger grated
- 1 bunch snake beans cut into 5cm lengths
Orange Caramel Sauce
- 120 grams brown sugar
- 80 ml red wine vinegar
- 2 star anise
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 250 ml chicken stock
- 1 orange juice and peel
Instructions
- Rub skin of pork belly salt and set aside for 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 220 deg C (430 deg F). Line a roasting pan, big enough for your piece of pork belly, with non stick baking paper.
- After 30 minutes wipe salt from the pork belly with paper towel. Remove any excess moisture, ensuring the belly is as dry as possible.
- Drizzle skin of pork belly with olive oil and massage in with fingers. Place pork in roasting pan skin side down. Drizzle some olive oil over the facing up meat side of the pork and season with salt and cracked pepper. Place in the oven and roast for 40 minutes.
- After 30 minutes reduce the oven temperature to 160 deg C (320 deg F). Turn your pork over in the roasting pan so it is now skin side up. Roast for another 1 1/2 hours. Then turn temperature up to 190 deg C (375 deg F) and continue to cook until your skin has become crisp crackling.
- Remove pork from oven and set aside to cool. While pork is cooling make the orange caramel sauce.
- Once cool place pork skin side down on a chopping board and cut pork into 4cm cubes. Set aside until required.
- Place wok over medium heat and add vegetable oil. Heat and add chilli, garlic and ginger. Once fragrant add snake beans. Cook while stirring for a few minutes and then add pork belly. Stir and toss for another minute and add orange caramel sauce. Cook for a further few minutes stirring continuously until pork is well coated in the caramel sauce.
- Serve immediately with steamed rice.
Orange caramel sauce
- Place a medium size saucepan over a low heat, add brown sugar and vinegar, stir until sugar has dissolved. Then add the res of the ingredients and increase heat until a hard simmer.
- Continue to cook for around 10 minutes until the liquid has reduced by around 2/3 to become a syrup. Remove peel, star anise and cinnamon from the syrup and discard. The syrup is now ready to use.
- You can cook your pork belly and make your orange caramel syrup the day ahead for this recipe. Keep both covered in the fridge until needed.
Nutrition
I have not had one single person eat my twice cooked Asian pork belly recipe and not fall in love with it. I hope you do too.
How do you like to eat your pork belly?
Sara xxx
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I’ve been wanting to make twice cooked pork for some time now, this recipe looks and sounds wonderful.
Sara
Thanks so much Amanda, twice cooked pork belly is a massive fave of mine, not matter how it is cooked.
Gaby
Yummo, this looks amazing! Will try to get my hands on some pork belly at the markets tomorrow to make it.
Sara
I’m so glad that you tried this Gaby, loved the pics on Insta!
john | heneedsfood
Um, I’d like to eat it exactly like this, please? I think I need to try this recipe on the weekend. I loves me pork belly!
Sara
Hope you enjoy it if you try it. Pork belly lovers unite!
Gourmet Getaways
Saying ‘pork belly’ is like calling Julie’s attention, LOL! She loves it! Great suggestion of a rice topper. The two are just made for each other!
Julie & Alesah
Gourmet Getaways xx
Sara
Pork belly is a bit like a siren to me too.
Helen | Grab Your Fork
I can see why this one is a family favourite. It sounds incredibly tasty!
Sara
Awe thanks Helen, they do love their pork.
Trent @ Food Assault
Who doesn’t love pork belly? I can think of many but they’re just crazy ????
Twice cooked, super sweet and the snake beans sound like a great accompaniment, nice one Sara ????
I want some of that crispiness now please ????????????
Trent @ Food Assault
Don’t know what’s with all the ????? lol
Sara
LOL, I have no idea either on the ?????
Thalia @ butter and brioche
I am so craving pork belly after seeing this post and the images. Just divine!
Sara
Thank you Thalia.
Lizzy (Good Things)
Seriously, this is making my mouth water, and it’s only 7.15am! How do I like my pork belly?! Like yours… I do something similar with an orange caramel sauce… a combination of two recipes, one was from Valli Little. Thanks for another great recipe.
Sara
LOL Liz, pork belly for breakfast?
Phuoc'n Delicious
You simply can’t go wrong with pork belly, unless something promises crsipy skin and you don’t get it *sad face* But this on the other hand looks amazing and ticks all the right boxes.
Sara
Oh I know, that promise of crackle and you don’t get it. I get far more than a sad face.
Lisa @ Blithe Moments
I don’t even particularly love pork and that sounds delicious. I can’t wait to make it for my pork loving other half.
Sara
Your pork loving half will love it and how wonderful are you making it for them.
milkteaxx
awww yes pork belly come to mumma!
Sara
My thoughts exactly!