Pork Belly with Fennel and Apple - Chef Recipe by Brenton Banner

Ingredients

800g free range pork belly
8 sticks of thyme
10 peppercorns
1/4 bunch celery
1 baby fennel
2 parsnips
100g macadamia nuts
2 apples, juiced
150mL oil
30mL white vinegar
5g salt
20mL macadamia oil
20g multidrextrin
4L water
500mL apple cider

Method

Pre-heat oven to 180 C (160 C fan forced).

Place 4 litres of water, apple cider, peppercorns, thyme and celery into a deep baking dish. Season and then put into oven. Bring everything to the boil, turn down the heat and slide the pork into the pan.

The pork should be totally submerged - if it isn’t – top up with more water. Cover the dish with a lid or tight tent of foil and place in the oven for three hours undisturbed.

When pork is cooked, leave it to cool slightly in the stock. Line a flat baking tray with cling film. Carefully lift the pork into the tray and make sure you get rid of any bits of vegetables or herbs, as they will end up pressed into the meat.

Cover the pork with another sheet of cling film and cover with a flat tray or dish – it must be completely flat as any indentations will also be pressed into the pork. Weigh the pork down with another dish, or some cans and leave to cool in the fridge overnight.

Unwrap the pork and place on a board. Trim the uneven edges so you have a neat sheet of meat. Cut the meat into four equal pieces and set aside until ready to cook.

Peel the parsnips down until they are an even 5 cent shape the entire way through. Fry the peel in a deep fryer at 135 C, until golden brown and reserve.

Cut the parsnips into rounds, about 0.5cm long, caramelise in a pan with oil, add butter and continue to roll around in the pan until tender.

Pick the green tops from the fennel, cut in four and caramelise in oil, add butter and then finish in the oven for 8 minutes.

In a blender, blitz macadamias with vinegar, apple juice and salt. Emulsify oil into mix slowly as if making a mayonnaise.

Whisk macadamia oil with multidrextrin until it forms a thicker powder, season with a little salt.

Heat the oil in a large frying pan until hot, then turn the heat down. Add pork to the pan, skin side down – be careful as it has a tendency to spit. Sizzle the pork as you would bacon for 5 minutes until the skin is crisp.

Flip it over and cook for 3-4 minutes until browned.

Plate it up.