Don't let bad rap about fat deter you from pork belly

<p>Allow me to confess: I have a freezer full of meat.</p><p>I am still working through the surplus from my subscription to Victoria Farmstead's meat CSA, which ended last September. The meats that I received were absolutely delicious, but one of the things I learned is that I simply do not eat as much meat as I have long assumed I did.</p><p>A few days ago, I was sorting through the packages and came upon a slab of pork belly, which I'd entirely forgotten. Oops.</p><p>A decade ago, when I wanted to make my own bacon — which I did, with superb results — it was not easy to find the pork belly I needed. Eventually, I ordered it through the Niman Ranch website. Today, pork belly is everywhere, or almost. Any local rancher that produces pork has it available, at least now and then.</p><p>My pork belly did not come from Victorian Farms. It was from a workshop I participated in at Sonoma Direct, during which we all helped break down a hog and left for home with a number of cuts wrapped for the freezer. I do not recall the date of the workshop but it was long enough ago that I worried about the quality of the pork belly.</p><p>I needn't have. It was wonderful, still, and produced great results when I cooked it.</p><p>If you are appalled by the use of pork belly — so fatty! — and the lard listed in the second recipe, well, I understand. But lard — and many other saturated animal fats — have long gotten an inappropriately bad rap in America. Lard from heritage pigs raised in the right way is actually a very healthful fat. Later this year, I'll be devoting a column to this and related issues but, for now, I'll say that there is a lot of reliable research thatdebunks the current mainstream “wisdom” about saturated fat. Stay tuned.</p><p>Although the cooking time for this pork belly is lengthy, the actual hands-on preparation time is brief, maybe 15 or 20 minutes.</p><p>Braised Pork Belly with Sweet Spices</p><p>Serves 8 to 10 as an appetizer</p><p>1½ to 2pounds pork belly, in one piece, skin on</p><p>2 slices fresh ginger, each about ¼ inch thick, halved</p><p>— Kosher salt</p><p>— Black pepper in a mill</p><p>4 cups Strong Stock or rich chicken stock (see Note below)</p><p>2 cups dry white wine</p><p>3 or 4garlic cloves, lightly crushed</p><p>2 teaspoons whole white peppercorns</p><p>2 cardamom pods, cracked</p><p>2-inch piece of cinnamon</p><p>1 star anise</p><p>2 juniper berries</p><p>2 allspice berries</p><p>1 or 2 whole cloves</p><p>3 tablespoons sugar, preferably organic cane sugar</p><p>The night before preparing the pork belly, set it on a clean work surface and rub it all over with the ginger, pressing firmly to release the juice. Season all over with salt and black pepper, wrap in wax paper and refrigerate overnight.</p><p>Remove the pork belly from the refrigerator at least 4 hours before serving it. It can be prepared 2 or 3 days before serving, if you like.</p><p>Preheat the oven to 300 degrees.</p><p>Set a heavy, ovenproof pan that has a lid over a high flame and when it is hot, add the belly, skin side down, and sear for about 2 to 3 minutes, until the skin takes on some color and shrinks. Turn and sear for 2 minutes more. Transfer the belly to a plate or a piece of waxed paper.</p><p>Pour the stock and wine into the pan, add the garlic cloves, peppercorns, cardamom pods, cinnamon, anise, juniper berries, allspice berries and clove. Season with a teaspoon or so of kosher salt.</p><p>Return the pork belly to the pan, cover the pan and set on the middle rack of the oven. Cook for 2½ to 3 hours, until the pork belly is completely tender and there is no resistance when speared with a fork.</p><p>Remove from the oven and let the pork belly cool in the liquid for about 20 to 25 minutes.</p><p>Transfer the belly to a plate, return the pan to a medium-high flame, stir in the sugar and simmer the liquid until it is reduced by about two-thirds. Remove from the heat, cool slightly and strain into a gravy cup or glass jar to settle. When settled — there will be an inch or so of clear fat on top of the pan juices — use a small ladle to skim off and discard the fat.</p><p>To serve, consult the suggestions below.</p><p>To save and serve later, put the belly into a container, pour the pan juices over it, cover and refrigerate.</p><p>Note: Strong Stock is made with pork ribs, pork butt, ham hock, chicken, shallots, leeks, green onions, ginger and white peppercorns. For a recipe, visit Eat This Now, Seasonal Pantry's companion blog, at pantry.blogs.pressdemocrat.com. To make rich chicken stock, simmer 8 to 10 cups of homemade chicken stock with 3 cups frozen tomatoes or 1 14-ounce can whole tomatoes, 2 slices of ginger and a teaspoon of white peppercorns until the liquid is reduced to 4 to 5 cups. Strain, chill and skim off the layer of fat that forms on the surface.</p><p>Serving suggestions</p><p>Serve as a simple appetizer or first course. To do so, put a piece (hot) about 2 inches square in a small bowl or plate, top with sauce and garnish with thinly sliced green onions, minced cilantro leaves or pea shoots.</p><p>To serve as a simple salad, serve atop greens of choice — I prefer young arugula — that have been tossed with a bit of kosher salt. Set 2 or 3 small slices of hot pork belly on top of the greens, drizzle with the heated sauce, garnish with minced parsley, shredded arugula or sliced green onions and serve immediately.</p><p>Use in pork fried rice, in place of roasted or smoked pork.</p><p>Serve over sliced potatoes (fried, boiled or steamed) and drizzle with heated sauce and a splash of Hawaiian Chile Water.</p><p>Cut several slices of hot pork belly into medium dice and serve over braised sprouting broccoli.</p><p>Chop and use in omelets.</p><p>Whether you've realized it or not, if you eat meat you've probably had pork rillons; they look a lot like chunks of fried bacon and are often found in salad in contemporary restaurants. It is very easy to make rillons at home; this version is inspired by a recipe in “Pork & Sons” by Stephane Reynaud (Phaidon, 2007, $39.95).</p><p>Pork Belly Rillons</p><p>Makes about 6 to 8 servings</p><p>2pounds, approximately, fresh pork belly, well chilled</p><p>— Kosher salt</p><p>1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper</p><p>½ teaspoon freshly ground white pepper</p><p>½ teaspoon ground ginger</p><p>¼ teaspoon ground clove</p><p>¼ teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg</p><p>2 cups fresh lard or duck fat</p><p>3 tablespoons sugar</p><p>Cut the pork belly into 2-inch cubes, put them in a large bowl, season with kosher salt and toss gently. Add the black pepper, white pepper, ginger, clove and nutmeg and toss again, gently but thoroughly. Cover and refrigerate for 24 to 36 hours.</p><p>To finish, remove the pork belly from the refrigerator.</p><p>Melt the lard or duck fat in a large heavy pan and when it is melted, add the pork belly and saute, turning frequently, over medium heat for about 10 minutes, until the pieces of pork belly begin to pick up a bit of color.</p><p>Reduce the heat to very low and simmer as gently as possible for 2 hours or until very tender.</p><p>Sprinkle sugar over the rillons and stir gently until the meat is deeply colored, about 10 to 15 minutes; do not let the meat burn.</p><p>Use a slotted spoon to transfer the rillons to non-fibrous absorbent paper, such as a large brown grocery bag, until well drained.</p><p>Serve immediately — see suggestions below — or store, covered, in a single layer in the refrigerator. </p><p>Although they are traditionally served either hot or cold, I prefer them hot.</p><p>Serving suggestions</p><p>Alongside scrambled eggs, for breakfast</p><p>With creamy polenta, for breakfast, lunch or dinner</p><p>In salads, in place of croutons</p><p>With baked sweet potatoes</p><p>Atop warm potato salad dressed in parsley-shallot vinaigrette</p><p>Atop warm sweet-potato salad with molasses vinaigrette</p><p>As part of a cheese and dried-fruit platter</p><p>Michele Anna Jordan hosts “Mouthful” each Sunday at 7 p.m. on KRCB 90.9 & 91.1 FM. E-mail Jordan at michele@micheleannajordan.com. You'll find her blog, “Eat This Now,” at pantry.blogs.pressdemocrat.com.</p>