How to make pork crackling (2024)

FAQs

How do you get the perfect crackling on pork? ›

Insufficient heat will make it hard for the skin to get really crisp. Make sure to take the pork out of the fridge 30 minutes before you cook it so that the meat reaches room temperature. A high starting temperature (240C/220C fan/gas 9 in this recipe) is essential for crisping up the pork.

Place the pork, rind-side up, in a roasting pan. Drizzle the oil over the pork, then rub the salt mixture into the cuts. Rub a little oil and salt into the scored rind and place in the oven.

After degreasing your crackling using a paper towel, place the cracklings in an airtight container. You can also settle for a food-storage bag that can be sealed and not permeable to air. It's best to avoid paper bags as they'd soil up in the fridge or freezer and ruin your pork crackling.

You may think you can do it yourself but trying to score skin that's flat on a bench is really hard. They have super sharp knives and can do it seconds flat! Finally, the pouring over of the boiling water is what will open up the scored skin, which will then let in the salt, which then forms the crispy skin.

After patting your pork roast dry with paper towel, we recommend leaving your roast skin side down on a bed of rock salt in the fridge for at least 24 hours. The salt will help to draw the moisture out and leave you with the ultimate chance of pork crackling perfection.

Fill a cast-iron pot halfway with oil and heat over medium heat until the oil reaches 350 degrees F. Add the pork belly to the oil and cook, stirring constantly, until golden brown and the skins begin to float, crack and pop, about 1 hour. Drain on a sheet tray lined with paper towel and allow to cool for 30 minutes.

Here's how:

Heat a large frying pan over a medium-high heat and slick it with a little flavourless oil (peanut, rice bran, etc). Place your pork skin side down in the frying pan, plonk something flat and heavy on top - a plate or another pan - and press down firmly. You should hear crackling and popping.

How to dry pork belly. You want the skin and fat to be as dry as possible. If time allows, chill the piece of pork uncovered for 4 hours or overnight (the air in the refrigerator is very dry). If there's no time, pat the meat dry with paper towel and finish off with a hair dryer (but make sure it's on the cold setting ...

Pay particular attention to getting the oil and salt into the score marks. The salt reacting with the fat is what causes crackling to puff up and become crisp. Leave the oil and salt ten minutes before roasting. I like to whiz fennel seeds in the food processor and add them to the salt and oil.

Does vinegar help pork crackling? ›

Another technique to get the perfect pork crackling is after you have pricked your pork skin, wipe it down with white vinegar before you apply the salt and let it rest uncovered in the fridge. Please note that we are only applying salt to the skin side, not the meat side.

While there are a few different ways to keep your pork cracklin fresh, one of the best is to store it in an airtight container. This will help to keep the moisture out and prevent the cracklin from drying. You can also try storing it in the fridge, but be sure to wrap it tightly so that it doesn't dry out.

Salting the Rind: Salt really is your best friend when it comes to pork crackling. You need to generously rub salt into the scored rind. This will help to draw out any moisture from the skin and is essential for achieving that sought-after crispy texture.

Further, when pork cracklins are fried in oil without removing the thick layers of fat, they become harder and more difficult to bite through. Removing the fat will help make the pork skin softer and crunchier. The heat at which you cook pork cracklins can also cause them to become hard.

Nope. The best crackling needs dry air, and covering will keep condensation on the skin. Covering a joint of meat when cooking does generally help to ensure a juicier joint, but if you use a joint of pork with some fat marbling, this fat will help to keep the meat tender without the need to cover.

Pork crackling is rubbery

Rub generously with sea salt, as this will help dry it out too. Give it a whole shelf in the fridge and let the cold air circulate around it.