Oven-roasted Cebu lechon (Roast pork belly roll)

A specialty of Will Mahusay’s home town, Cebu lechon is one of two main styles of lechon (roast pork) in the Philippines.This popular pork dish is made by combining pork belly with a variety of aromatic ingredients and roasting until the skin is crisp.

Credit: Kitti Gould

• serves

  4

• prep

  10 minutes

• cook

  1 hour

• difficulty

  Easy

Ingredients

• 800 g-1 kg piece pork belly, skin on
• ¼ cup vegetable stock powder
• 5 dried bay leaves
• 4 star anise
• 2 tsp black peppercorns
• 3 cloves garlic, chopped
• 3 spring onions (scallions)
• 1 stick lemongrass
• 2 litres boiling water
• ¼ cup soy sauce
• 1 x 375 ml can Coke
• ¼ cup canola oil

Resting time: 15 minutes.

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 250°C (220°C fan-forced).
2. Lay the pork belly, skin-side down, on a clean chopping board. Sprinkle evenly with vegetable stock powder. Sprinkle with the bay leaves, star anise, black peppercorns and garlic. Lay the spring onion and lemongrass crossways in the centre (folding them so they fit within the pork in the next step).
3. Neatly and tightly roll the meat, ensuring all the aromats are packed in. Tie the pork roll with kitchen string at regular intervals to hold it together. Place the pork roll on a wire rack with a tray underneath. Slowly and evenly pour the boiling water over the skin. Pierce the skin a handful of times (you can use the sharp tip of a meat thermometer to do this).
4. Combine soy sauce and Coke in a bowl. Brush mixture all over pork belly skin. Allow to dry for a few minutes.
5. Rub canola oil evenly over the skin.
6. Reduce oven temperature to 210°C (180°C fan-forced). Roast pork for 45 minutes. Increase oven temperature to 240°C (220°C fan-forced). Roast pork for a further 15-25 minutes or until the skin is crisp, or until cooked to your liking. The internal temperature of the pork should be 68°C-75°C when tested with a meat thermometer.
7. Remove the pork from the oven and rest for 15 minutes. Slice and chop into bite-sized pieces. Serve with your favourite roast dinner accompaniments. Serve this dish with potato salad, steamed rice, soy sauce, chilli or sawasan dipping sauce: In a bowl add and mix together 30 ml light soy sauce, 20ml dark soy sauce, 100ml white vinegar. 

 

This recipe is from A Taste of the Philippines with Yasmin Newman. Photography by Kitti Gould.

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.