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Confit lemon and vanilla pork belly with salt-baked pineapple
Serves 4-6 Starters and mains
Ingredients
- 21⁄2 litres sunflower oil
- 1 garlic bulb, cut in half lengthways
- 2 sprigs of thyme
- 3 bay leaves
- 8 cardamom pods, crushed
- 1 lemon, peel removed with a peeler, plus juice
- 2 vanilla pods, split lengthways
- 2kg boneless pork belly
For the salt-baked pineapple
- 500g clean, large-grained industrial white rock salt
- 500ml egg whites, beaten (liquid egg whites, such as Two Chicks, can be bought in supermarkets)
- 1⁄2 pineapple, halved lengthways, skin on
For the classic vinaigrette
- 200ml sunflower oil
- 50ml white wine vinegar
- 1tsp Dijon mustard
To serve
- ground ginger
Method
Preheat the oven to 150C/300F/ Gas 2. Place the oil, garlic, herbs, cardamom pods, lemon peel and juice in a deep roasting tin. Scrape in the seeds from the vanilla and whisk everything together. Add the pork belly, ensuring it is fully submerged in the oil mixture.
Put the roasting tin on the hob over a medium heat to warm the oil for about 5 minutes but be careful not to begin frying the pork.
Cover the tin with foil and place in the oven for about 3 hours. Remove from the oven and lift off the foil. Test that the pork belly is tender enough by inserting a small knife – there should be little or no resistance. If there is, cover with a fresh piece of foil and roast for a further 30 minutes. Once cooked, remove from the oven and leave the pork to rest in the oil for 15 minutes.
Carefully lift the meat from the oil and place it on a baking tray. Place it under a hot grill and crisp the skin until coloured, being careful not to burn it. Remove and keep warm.
To prepare the salt-baked pineapple, preheat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas 4.
Mix the salt and egg whites together so you have a mixture that’s the texture of wet sand.
Put the pineapple, skin-side up, in a large casserole dish or roasting tin and cover with the salt mixture, ensuring you pack it firmly around the pineapple. Place in the oven and bake for 45 60 minutes. Remove from the oven and leave to cool at room temperature.
When cool, gently break the salt casing and remove the pineapple. Using a sharp knife, peel off the skin and cut the flesh into slices.
For the vinaigrette, whisk together the oil, vinegar and mustard in a small bowl.
Dress the pineapple with the vinaigrette and sprinkle the ground ginger over. Carve the pork and arrange on individual plates with the pineapple slices.
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