Roast Pork Belly with Crackling

Mar 06, 21 Roast Pork Belly with Crackling

Posted by in All Posts, My Fave Recipes

In the past when I tried to roast a pork belly, I could never get the crackling nice and crunchy!  Fast forward to 2019 with Covid, my hubby and brother both found separate recipes that guaranteed crunchy crackling every time.  I liked part of both recipes so have combined them here. Ingredients: 1kg pork belly white vinegar 1 tsp raw sugar 2 tsp salt Spice Mix: 1/4 tsp Chinese 5 spice powder 1/4 tsp sea salt   Method – Part 1: With skin side down, cut into pork meat 1/2 – 3/4 of the way down but not through the fat and skin! In a frying pan, add enough water to half fill the frying pan, 1 tsp salt and sugar and heat on medium to high heat. Once boiling, add the pork belly skin side down and cook for 8 minutes.  Repeat on other side. Once done, remove the pork belly and let it cool on a wire rack with skin side up. Pat skin dry with some paper towel when it is cool enough to do so. Using a metal meat skewer, punch holes into the skin of the pork belly.  DO NOT PUNCH TOO DEEP THAT IT REACHES THE MEAT.  This usually takes 5 – 10 minutes. Brush the pork skin with vinegar and then sprinkle 1/4-1/2 tsp of salt. Let it rest for 10 minutes and repeat the process.  My pork belly came with pre-scored lines in the skin. Put the pork belly into the fridge uncovered and allow the skin to dry for a minimum of 12 hours. If you can, check on it every now and then to wipe off any moisture that comes to the surface. Method – Part 2: Take your pork belly out of the fridge and apply the spice mix on the sides and meat of the pork belly. Place the pork belly on a flat piece of foil and wrap sides up to make a foil boat around the meat part of the pork belly.  Hope that makes sense!  This is...

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Quick Raspberry Coconut Slice Recipe

Jul 17, 17 Quick Raspberry Coconut Slice Recipe

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This recipe is fast becoming one of our favourites and it’s fairly quick to make.  The one I’ll be sharing is actually a combination of 3 recipes.  The base was inspired by the “Apple and Sour Cream Slice” using a packet of butter cake mix.  The topping was a combination of 2 recipes because we were not happy with either one so I varied and combined them both.     Base Ingredients: 340 grams butter cake mix 1/2 cup desiccated coconut 125 grams butter melted   Topping Ingredients: 1/4 – 1/2 cup of raspberry jam 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla essence 2 cups desiccated coconut 1/2 cup caster sugar 2 extra large eggs (100 grams)   Method: Mix all the ingredients for the base.  This will give a crumbly biscuit-like texture.  Press firmly down into a slice tin. Bake the base in a 160 degrees C oven for 10 minutes.  Bring out of the oven and let cool for a few minutes. Microwave the raspberry jam for about 30 seconds or until warm. Once the base has cooled a little, spread the jam gently over the base. Mix the rest of the ingredients for the topping and drop small chunks all over until the slice is all covered. Bake for 35-40 minutes in a 160 degrees C oven.       Hope you like the recipe!...

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Spice Wholemeal Cookies

Sep 22, 13 Spice Wholemeal Cookies

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Another family favourite recipe.  These are yummy on their own or with icing on top.  These would be perfect as Christmas gifts.  Again this is not my recipe but one we found and modified to our liking.     Ingredients: 125 grams butter 110 grams brown sugar 1 small egg beaten 225 grams wholemeal plain flour pinch of salt 2 teaspoon of mixed spice   Steps: Cream butter and sugar together then slowly mix in the beaten egg. Add sifted flour, salt and mixed spice and mix to form a firm dough. Roll out dough until 1/2cm thick and cut out shapes using cookie cutters.  Combine scraps. Repeat Step 6 until all the dough is used up. Bake in oven for 12-15 minutes at 190 degrees C or until pale brown. Enjoy!...

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Soft Chocolate Chip Cookies

Sep 14, 13 Soft Chocolate Chip Cookies

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My 4yo daughter did some baking at Kindy yesterday and loved the choc chip cookies they made.  Luckily the Kindy sent the recipe as part of the Kindy’s Newsletter last night. This is not my recipe and I do not know where it was sourced from except it was provided by a mother at Kindy.  We tried the recipe today and we love them!   We have tried a lot of choc chip recipes but they always harden after they cooled down. These stayed soft after they cooled down – soft and chewy!  They were too yummy not to share the recipe with others :).     Ingredients: 125 g melted margarine ½ cup caster sugar ½ cup brown sugar 1 egg ½ teaspoon vanilla ½ teaspoon salt 1 ¾ cups of sifted self raising flour (OR sifted wholemeal self raising flour) 125g choc chips   Steps: Melt margarine in microwave for 30 seconds. Add sugars and cream the suger with the butter. Mix in egg, salt and vanilla essence. Add sifted flour and chocolate chips.  Mix until ingredients are combined. Roll into balls, place on baking trays, flatten and add extra chocolate chips on the top. Bake in a moderate oven (180 degrees C) for 10-15 minutes Leave on trays for 5 minutes after taking out of oven before placing on cooling racks. Enjoy!...

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Chicken with Pineapple & Cashews Stir Fry

Aug 16, 13 Chicken with Pineapple & Cashews Stir Fry

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This recipe is another family favourite.  Hope you like it too.   Ingredients: 1 tablespoon oil 1/2 cup chicken stock 2 teaspoons cornflour 5 boneless chicken thighs fillets cut into 2cm pieces 2 teaspoons finely chopped garlic 1 large fresh red chilli sliced 1 large red or brown onion cut into wedges 1 large green or red capsicum cut into 2cm squares 1 can of Pineapple pieces 1 tablespoon oyster sauce 1 tablespoon fish sauce 2 teaspoons sugar 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 1/2 cup of roasted unsalted cashews Extra: 1 can of Champion Mushroom sliced   Steps: Combine chicken stock and cornflour and set aside. Heat oil and add garlic & chilli and stir fry for ~5 seconds. Add chicken and stir fry until cooked. Add onion, capsicum and any extra veges and stir fry for 1 minute. Add pineapple, oyster sauce, fish sauce, sugar and chicken stock/cornflour mixture.  Stir fry for 1 minute.  Scatter cashews over, stir to mix thoroughly then transfer to serving dish.  Serve with rice and...

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Gingerbread Trees Baking

Dec 23, 12 Gingerbread Trees Baking

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Quickly sharing a photo of the Gingerbread trees we made today using the recipe found here.  These are yummy and so easy to make.  Next to bake/make is chocolate mousse and salt caramel fudge...

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