Australian Extra Virgin Olive Oil Recipes

pork-belly-recipe

Root vegetable gratin and succulent pork belly

While maintaining a healthy balance is essential, sometimes you just want to indulge in something rich, succulent and delicious.

That’s why we love this cured pork belly recipe, adapted from a dish by Cobram Estate Chef, Kevin O’Connor.

It brings together the goodness of locally sourced produce, including fresh Australian Extra Virgin Olive Oil (AEVOO) and succulent pork belly to create a decadent, yet balanced weekend feast for the whole family.

Kevin is all about sourcing local produce for his cooking, so there’s no hard and fast rules when it comes to the vegetables you use for this recipe – although he says root vegetables at this time of year are ripe for the picking and perfect for roasting.

INGREDIENTS

Australian Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1.5 kilos pork belly
2 tbsp brown sugar
2 tbsp sea salt
Australian bush herbs
(e.g. lemon myrtle, bush tomato, mountain pepper)
Mirepoix (finely chopped celery, carrot, onion)
1 bottle hard apple cider
Salt and pepper
Seasonal root vegetables of your choice
(e.g. artichokes, turnips, carrots, beetroot)
100 grams parmesan cheese
Radicchio
Fresh plums
Asian plum sauce

pork-belly-recipe

METHOD

Rub the pork belly with a mixture of AEVOO, salt, brown sugar and Australian bush herbs and cure in the fridge overnight.

The next day, sauté the mirepoix in a large pan with a good slosh of AEVOO until softened.

Slice the pork belly into small portions and brown in the pan before covering with the hard apple cider and a lid then simmering on a low heat for two hours until tender.

Chop vegetables into medium sized chunks and roast in the oven with a good slosh of AEVOO at 180oC for 30 minutes.

Remove the vegetables from oven once cooked and sprinkle with grated Parmesan cheese before placing back in the oven at 120oC to caramelise before serving.

Remove the pork belly from the pan then sear on a piping hot BBQ over flames, basting with AEVOO until the skin looks crispy and delicious.

Serve with an Asian style plum sauce, like this one from Love & Olive Oil, sliced fresh plums to cut the fat, and fresh radicchio leaves to add crunch.