Pork Belly Skewers with Asian Chile Sauce

Pork Belly Skewers with Asian Chile Sauce

 

Ingredients:

 

 

For brine:

-2 tsp fennel seeds, toasted

-4 tsp coriander seeds, toasted

-1 gallon water

-1 1/3 cups kosher salt

-2/3 cup sugar

-3 (4-5 inch) fresh red chilies, thinly sliced

-1 tbsp. black peppercorns

-2 shallots, sliced

-3 garlic cloves, smashed

 

For pork belly:

-3 lbs. pork belly, skin discarded

-2 tbsp. vegetable oil

-1 medium onion, cut into 6 wedges

-1 head of garlic, left unpeeled and halved crosswise

-2 shallots, halved lengthwise

-2 cups chicken stock or reduced-sodium chicken broth

 

For Chile sauce:

-2 tbsp. Asian fish sauce

-1 cup grated palm sugar or light brown sugar

-1/4 cup fresh lime juice

-1/4 cup rice vinegar

-1/4 cup cilantro, chopped

-4 (3 inch) fresh red chilies, chopped

-6 garlic cloves, chopped

 

Equipment:

-20-30 (4-6 inch) wooden skewers, soaked in water for 1 hour

 

 

Directions:

 

Brine pork belly:

Bring all brine ingredients to a boil in a 6-quart pot, then simmer, uncovered, 20 minutes. Cool brine to room temperature, then chill until cold. In a roasting pan, cover pork belly with brine, then chill  24 hours. Remove pork belly from brine, and rinse under cold water. Pat pork belly dry.

 

Braise pork belly:

Set pressure cooker to sauté setting, heat oil until it shimmers, then cook onion, and shallots, stirring occasionally, until golden, about 5 minutes. Add stock and bring to a  boil, scraping up brown bits. Add pork belly. Cover and lock lid in place. Select high pressure and set timer for 45 minutes. When audible beep sounds, use Natural Pressure Release for 15 minutes then use Quick Pressure Release to complete. When float valve drops, turn off. Remove lid, tilting away from you to allow steam to disperse.

Remove pork belly (reserve braising liquid for another use) and cool to room temperature.

Wrap tightly in several layers of plastic wrap and chill, pressed between 2 baking sheets with a weight (such as four 28 ounce cans) on top, 2-4 hours.

 

Make chile sauce:

Puree all sauce ingredients in a blender.

 

Skewer pork belly:

Bring pork belly to room temperature, about 30 minutes. Cut lengthwise into 1 inch strips, then cut each strip crosswise into 1/3 inch-wide pieces. Thread 2 or 3 pieces onto a skewer and brush with chile sauce.

 

Prepare grill:

If using a gas grill, preheat all burners on high 10 minutes, then adjust heat to medium high.

 

Grill pork belly:

Oil grill rack, then grill pork belly, turning occasionally and basting with chile sauce once more, until well browned on all sides, 3-4 minutes total. Brush with more chile sauce to serve.