Why do most belly pork recipes recommend cooking the pork at a high temperature at the beginning of cooking?
Most belly pork recipes recommend cooking the meat at a high temperature at the beginning. And then lowering it for a number of hours.
However, I have found that when I do that, the skin rarely forms decent crackling. Presumably because the skin is still a bit wet and it takes time for it to get hot enough to crackle.
I have only had success when I turn the heat up at the end of cooking.
Why do all these recipes recommend the opposite of what is working for me?
Best Answer
As far as I've always believed there is 3 reasons for it.
I. Theory the high temperature shocks the skin helping the skin crisp up if you've ever put a chip in cold oil you'll notice it takes far longer to crisp up than one dropped into the same oil but once hot. Or a better description is probably ... Have you ever put a poppadum into cold oil? Notice how it never puffs up, just goes brown.
The high heat helps seal the meat I'm theory helping keep the moisture in, even though most of the 'moisture' in belly pork is actually the fat self basting itself.
The high temperature helps raise the interior temperature to above the 'danger zone' quicker.
Now I do agree with you, the initial blast does not make the skin crackle, especially since I cover my meat with foil after the first blast which essentially means the skin then steams for 5 hours. I did however try low from the start once and the end result was a thin crispy but a little chewy almost crackling layer even after half an hour at 230c at the end. So I do think high initial heat plays a crucial role to getting good crackling in the long run even if it doesn't seem like it to begin with.
I would suggest not fixating on any time frame for the initial blast. Keep your oven on full wack until the skin bubbles up, if I can be bothered (it's a bit messy and risks major burns every time) I pour 300c oil over the top of my pork half way into my first blast which really helps the skin blister and results in perfect light crispy skin at the end.
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What temperature should pork belly be cooked at?
Preheat oven to 450\xb0F. Roast pork belly for 30 minutes on the middle rack in a heavy, oven-safe pan or skillet, skin side up / fat side up. Reduce heat to 275\xb0F and roast for an hour or more, until tender but not mushy. (Larger pieces of pork belly will take longer.Should pork belly be at room temperature before cooking?
Preparing your Meat Before cooking red meat, it's best to remove it from the fridge at least half an hour before you use it and bring it to room temperature. This way the meat will cook evenly rather than burning on the outside and still being cool or uncooked on the inside.What temp is pork belly tender?
Pork belly is ready to eat when it reaches an internal temperature of 165 degrees F, which takes about 3 to 4 hours at 225 degrees F. At that time, you can wrap the pork belly in aluminum foil or butcher paper and continue to cook it until the internal temperature reaches 200 degrees F.Does pork belly get more tender the longer you cook it?
"You want to slowly cook the pork belly [just like Chef John's Caramel Pork Belly] so it gets very tender and the fat has time to render to baste the meat as it cooks," Herrera says.How To Make Slow Roasted Pork Belly | Gordon Ramsay
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