Tamarind Braised Pork Belly, Kimchi, Nashi Crisps and Perilla - Chef Recipe by Matt Golinski

Ingredients

Pork belly:

1kg boneless pork belly, skin on
100g block tamarind, soaked in 2 cups boiling water for 10 minutes
75g brown sugar
125mL light soy sauce
50mL rice vinegar
25mL sesame oil
1/2 tsp Chinese five spice
50g fresh ginger, cut into 5mm slices
1 tsp salt

Kimchi:

1kg wombok, cut into 2cm squares
1/2 cup and 1/2 Tbs salt
500g daikon, peeled and julienned
15g rice flour
75g gotchujang paste
20mL fish sauce
20g caster sugar
2 cloves garlic, crushed
25g ginger, finely chopped
6 spring onions, sliced into 5mm rings

Nashi crisps:

2 Nashi pears
1/2 tsp shichimi pepper
2 Tbs sesame oil

Garnish:

1 cup perilla leaves

Method

Squeeze tamarind and water together with your hands to make a paste, pass through a fine strainer, then mix the sieved pulp with brown sugar, soy sauce, rice vinegar, sesame oil and five spice.

Score the pork belly and place skin side up in a roasting tray.

Pour the tamarind mixture around, but not over the pork belly. Scatter with ginger over and around. Cover with a layer of baking paper and two layers of foil and braise for 3 hours at 150 C.

Transfer pork belly to a tray to cool, strain the braising liquid into a saucepan and refrigerate until the fat has set on top.

Once set, remove the fat and reduce the remaining cooking liquid down to 250mL.

Kimchi:

Dissolve the half cup of salt in 3 cups of cold water and pour over the wombok in a large bowl. Squeeze the wombok in the water for a couple of minutes, then place a plate on top to weigh it down so the wombok is submerged. Leave for 3 hours.

Sprinkle the daikon with the remaining salt, leave to stand for 30 minutes, then squeeze out excess moisture and set aside.

In a small saucepan, combine half cup of cold water and rice flour and stir over the heat until it boils and thickens. Stir in the gotchujang paste, fish sauce, sugar, garlic and ginger.

Rinse the wombok in three changes of water and squeeze out all excess moisture with your hands.

Transfer to a large bowl and mix with the daikon, rice flour mixture and sliced shallots. Pack tightly into a sterile glass or ceramic container, cover loosely and leave out to ferment for a minimum of 3 days.

Nashi crisps:

Slice the Nashi pears very finely and lay on trays lined with baking paper. Lightly brush with sesame oil and sprinkle with shichimi pepper. Turn all slices and repeat.

Bake for 3-4 hours at 100 C, opening oven occasionally to let out excess steam.

To serve:

Place the pork belly on a roasting tray and reheat in a 220 C oven until the skin puffs.

Slice the pork belly and serve on the kimchi, garnished with Nashi crisps and perilla leaves, with warm tamarind sauce on the side.