Chef Sean Scotese learned everything he knows about pork belly from a trip he took to China. Or, more specifically, from a guy he met on the side of the road in China who ran a food cart that was open until 4 a.m. So, naturally, Mike and Josh Greenfield of The Brother's Green invited him to their house to get schooled on the Asian art of BBQ pork belly. Turns out it's way easier to make than we thought—just remember this lesson and you'll get an A+ every time.
Step 1: Tenderize
In order to get the desired crisp on your pork belly, the first step is to create "one thousand holes" in the skin so that the fat will render. (You don't need to really do one thousand—"a lot" will do.) Scotese has a "Dexter-like" briefcase full of sharp, metal pokers designed for the task, but you can use a fork or a toothpick. Prick all over the skin with whatever instrument you choose, being careful to only puncture the skin, not the meat.
Step 2: Dry
It is a fact of life that dry skin crisps better than moist skin. Scotese's trick to crispy pork belly is to rub equal parts baking soda and salt into the skin—the combo of baking soda and salt will draw out moisture and set you up for success.
Step 3: Sit
Let the pork belly strips "hang out overnight, uncovered, ideally in front of a fan," which will dry them out even more. After they've sat for at least 8 hours, rinse them to remove the baking soda and salt. Then, as a final step to ensure that the baking soda is neutralized, pour a tiny bit of vinegar over the skin (the less it foams, the better—if it is foaming a lot, rinse the strips again).
Step 4: Season
After rinsing and neutralizing the baking soda, transfer the pork belly strips to a sheet pan topped with a wire rack. Now you're ready to marinate. Scotese goes the direction of Asian-inspired flavors: honey, lemon juice, Chinese five spice blend, and salt. He applies the seasoning to the meat side of the strip, leaving the skin bare.
Step 5: Cook
To make sure you get juicy meat, cook skin side up at 350°F for an hour and a half. Then jack up the oven up to as high as it will go. You'll know the belly's ready when the skin puffs and is super crispy, which will happen fairly quickly after raising the heat.
Step 6: Serve
Scotese serves the pork belly with a sauce of finely minced ginger, grape seed oil, sesame seed, chive, scallion, leek, white pepper, salt, and sugar—or with a sauce of toasted chili oil, cumin, and star anise. Or use both sauces at once. You know, "for zing."
After making the pork belly, do this (if it isn't gone already):
Put pork belly on pizza, top with above mentioned chive and ginger sauce, and don't tell the chef in China—this probably isn't how they traditionally serve it up on the side of the road over there.
