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    Pork belly with perfect crackling

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    Pork belly with perfect crackling

    'Golden, crunchy crackling alongside tender, soft pork is many people's dream Sunday lunch. Belly is the perfect cut for this – it is quite fatty, so the meat doesn’t dry out before the crackling becomes exquisitely crunchy.' Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall

    • Preparation time: 5 minutes
    • Cooking time: 2 hours
    • Total time: 2 hours 5 minutes 5 minutes

    Serves: 6

    Ingredients

    • 1 tbsp coriander seeds
    • 2 tsp fennel seeds
    • 2kg pork belly joint, unrolled

    Method

    1. Preheat the oven to 220C/gas 7. With a pestle and mortar, bash the seeds lightly until they are just cracked.
    2. If the skin isn’t already deeply scored, use a sharp knife to make them deeper. Rub salt, pepper and a bit more than half of the cracked seeds onto the skin, working them into the scores.
    3. Scatter the remaining cracked seeds into a large roasting tin; put the meat on top and roast for 30 minutes, then turn down the temperature to 180°C, gas mark 4 and cook for about 1 hour 30 minutes more – until the juices run clear when the meat is pierced with a skewer and the skin has crackled to a gorgeous golden brown. If the crackling looks pale, turn the heat back up high and keep checking until it is done. Leave to rest in a warm place, uncovered, for 20 minutes.
    4. Remove the crackling from the pork before carving. Cut the joint into thick slices and break the crackling into pieces

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