Sticky pork belly with Vietnamese-style salad & smashed peanuts Recipe

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There is nothing better than succulent pork belly with sweet and salty Asian flavours. Add a fresh salad and crunchy peanuts to top it off. Delicious!

Ingredients

600 g pork belly

6 tbsp hoisin sauce

3 tbsp clear honey

3 tbsp rice vinegar

3 tbsp soy sauce

4 tbsp tomato sauce (ketchup)

2.5 cm / 1 in piece ginger, peeled and finely chopped

coconut rice. to serve

For the salad

¼ cucumber, cut into ribbons using a vegetable peeler

6 radishes, sliced

75 g sugar snap peas, halved horizontally

2 spring onions, thinly sliced

2 tbsp mint leaves, large leaves torn

2 tbsp Thai basil, large leaves torn (use coriander if you can’t find this)

1 tbsp salted peanuts, toasted and lightly smashed in a pestle and mortar

FOR THE DRESSING

1 small red chilli, finely chopped

½ garlic clove, grated

½ lime juice

1½ tsp light brown sugar

1 tbsp rice vinegar

Method

Remove the rind from the pork and put the meat in a large sealable food bag or casserole dish. In a bowl, mix the hoisin, honey, vinegar, soy, tomato sauce and ginger, then pour over the pork and massage well. Seal the bag or cover the dish and leave to marinate in the fridge for at least 4 hrs, or overnight.
Heat oven to 160C/140C fan/gas 3. Transfer the pork and its marinade to a snug roasting tin, lined with foil. Pour over 50ml water, cover with foil and roast for 2 hrs, or until tender, basting halfway through. Take the pork out and increase oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6. Remove the foil and pour the sauce into a small pan. Bring the sauce to the boil and let it bubble until thick and syrupy. Brush some of the sauce all over the pork and pop back in the oven, uncovered, for 20 mins until sticky and caramelised in places. Transfer to a chopping board, cover lightly with foil and leave to rest for 20 mins.
Meanwhile, prepare the salad. Toss all the ingredients, except the peanuts, together in a bowl. To make the dressing, combine all the ingredients and set aside.
Reheat the remaining sauce, adding a splash of water if it has become too thick. Toss the dressing through the salad and divide between 2 plates, then top with the smashed peanuts. Cut the pork into thick slices, arrange alongside the salad, then drizzle over the sauce.