Pork Belly, Langoustine Consomme, Pear, Lychee and Asparagus - Chef Recipe by Dan Marsalek

Ingredients

500 g skin-on pork belly
10% salt brine
6 langoustines
1 fennel, sliced
1 white onion, sliced
1/2 celery, sliced
1 bulb garlic
2 lemons
50 g tomato paste
250mL white wine
2 L fish stock
3 gelatin sheets, bloomed in cold water
100 g parsley, chervil, thyme
3 pears, cut into 6, seeds removed, flesh scored
12 lychees, peeled and deseeded
12 asparagus spears, 6 cut into spears and 6 sliced into ribbons
250 g pork jus

Method

Pork belly:

Brine the pork overnight in the 10% salt brine.

Rinse the brine off and place into a vacuum bag, on full seal and cook at 62 C for 24 hours, once cooked, press with a weight to keep the skin flat as it cools and cool overnight.

Once cooled, remove from the bag, slice away the skin, ensuring not to cut too far into the fat, remove the excess fat from the skin and cut into even portions.

Dehydrate the skin for 6 hours at 75 C.

Fry this in hot oil set at 190 C using 2 sets of tweezers or small tongs to keep it straight.

Season with salt.

Langoustines:

Blanch the langoustines in boiling water for 20 seconds and place directly into an ice bath.

Remove the shells and reserve for the consommé.

Using a long skewer, skewer the langoustines lengthways to keep them flat, season with salt and pepper and grill on the BBQ or flat plate, add some butter and lemon juice to season.

Consommé:

Roast the shells for 30 minutes at 180 C.

Into a medium-sized pot, add the sliced veg and garlic, fry with a little olive oil until fragrant, add half a lemon, the roasted shells and add the white wine, reduce the wine to a glaze and add the fish stock, bring to a simmer, skim the top of the liquid and cook on low for 1.5 hours.

Strain the stock through a fine sieve and add the bloomed gelatin.

Allow to set completely, then freeze completely.

Once frozen – set the consommé over a strainer lined with muslin cloth and place in the fridge, allow to slowly defrost and drip through the muslin cloth.

You will be left with an incredibly clear and purified langoustine consommé.

Pears:

Cut each pair into 6 and remove the seeds allowing a nice flat surface on each piece and score this diagonally.

Place these into a vacuum bag with some lime juice and water, seal on full and cook for 15 minutes at 75 C.

Place into an ice bath and chill completely.

Lychee gel:

Blitz the lychees into a puree, weigh this liquid and for every 100 g use 1 g of Gellan gum to set,

Bring mixture to a boil and whisk to dissolve the Gellan, pour onto a tray and allow to cool completely.

Once cooled, blitz this into a smooth gel.

Ice wine vinegar gel:

Repeat the same process as the lychee gel for the ice wine vinegar gel.

Asparagus:

Cut the asparagus into spears and remove the ends with a small knife or a peeler, leaving the green inside exposed.

Take a mandolin and carefully shave the asparagus into long strips, place these strips into a vacuum bag, add lime juice and seal on full vacuum.

Allow to marinate for 1 hour.

Recipe provided by HungryChef - Private Chef