Cycle 4 – Item 96

11 (Thu) April 2013

Oven-Roasted Gold Mountain Pork Belly

2.0

by me

at home

-Oksu, Seongdong, Seoul, Republic of Korea-

with W and DJ

My signature Gold Mountain Pork Bellies was originally conceived as a barbecue item cooked outside in a kettle grill, but an oven version will allow for more convenient indoor cooking at home.

This was a second attempt (see previously 2.316 Spaghetti al Peperoncino with Baked/Refried Gold Mountain Pork Belly in Tomato-Parmesan Sauce).  Because the focus was on technique, I didn’t put too much thought/effort into the spice rub, which simply involved an improvised melange of seasoning salt + pepper steak seasoning + cajun spices + onion powder + garlic powder + chili powder, etc.  I cooked them this time uncovered at a higher temperature of 180 C for 2 hours to get a better crust.  It worked like a charm: crispy on the outside, juicy inside.  In terms of taste, as before, the only thing lacking was the trace of smokiness resulting from live coals.  Maybe a dash of liquid smoke would do the trick?  The aromatics that I’d added to the water didn’t really seem to do anything, the spice rub being so strong to begin with.  Ultimately, the pork belly that I used here, a cheaper cut sourced from Canada, had a slightly porky off-flavor that kinda ruined the whole thing, but I’ll be sure not to skimp next time.

(See also GLOBAL FOOD GLOSSARY)