Pork Entertaining

Crispy pork belly with native citrus caramel

Name: Crispy pork belly recipe with native citrus caramel
Yield: 8
Ingredients: 1.2 kg pork belly, off the bone; 4 coriander roots, scraped; 6cm piece native ginger, roughly chopped (substitute 3cm piece ginger); 2cm piece fresh turmeric, roughly chopped, or ½ tsp ground turmeric; 80ml oil; 100g light palm sugar (from Asian grocers and selected supermarkets); 400ml orange juice; 1 lemongrass stalk, thinly sliced; 4-6 aniseed myrtle leaves; 3 lemon myrtle leaves; 1 tbs Geraldton wax; 100ml lime juice; Pulp of 8 finger limes

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Crispy pork belly with native citrus caramel, Sep 24, p 15 — Rob Palmer

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by delicious. team

delicious. team

May 08, 2025

“Pork belly is always a crowd-pleaser, and this is no exception. For best results, begin this recipe a day ahead to allow time for drying out the pork belly overnight in the fridge, to achieve the ultimate crackling experience. For extra-special presentation, serve on betel leaves. This really shines with native flavours, but if any are tricky to find, more accessible alternatives can do the trick. Try finely shredded makrut (kaffir) lime leaf in place of Geraldton wax; 2 tsp fennel seeds for the anise myrtle; and the zest of 1 lemon in place of the lemon myrtle.” – Mindy Woods. To source native ingredients, check out Woods’ guide here.

This is an edited extract from Karkalla at Home by Mindy Woods, published by Murdoch Books, AUD$49.99. Photography by Rob Palmer.

1.2 kg pork belly, off the bone

Native citrus caramel

4 coriander roots, scraped
6cm piece native ginger, roughly chopped (substitute 3cm piece ginger)
2cm piece fresh turmeric, roughly chopped, or ½ tsp ground turmeric
⅓ cup (80ml) macadamia oil
100g light palm sugar (from Asian grocers and selected supermarkets)
400ml orange juice
1 lemongrass stalk, thinly sliced
4-6 aniseed myrtle leaves
3 lemon myrtle leaves
1 tbs Geraldton wax
100ml lime juice
Pulp of 8 finger limes

Method

1.

Pat pork dry thoroughly with paper towel. Score the skin of the pork and, for best results, allow it to dry, uncovered and skin-side up, in the fridge overnight.
2.

When ready to cook the pork, preheat oven to 240°C/220°C fan-forced.
3.

Season the pork belly generously with 2 tbs salt flakes, rubbing it into the scoredskin. Place the meat skin-side up on a wire rack in a roasting pan and cook for 40 minutes, or until the skin has crackled.
4.

Reduce the oven temperature to 200°C/180°C fan-forced, and cook for 1 hour, or until the meat is cooked through and the juices run clear. Leave to rest for 15 minutes before carving.
5.

To make the native citrus caramel, pound the coriander, ginger and turmeric to a fine paste using a mortar and pestle, or blend in a small food processor. Heat the oil in a small heavy-based frypan over medium heat and fry paste, stirring constantly, until it is just starting to colour. Stir in the sugar and 2½ tbs water and cook until the sugar dissolves. Add the orange juice, lemongrass and all the myrtle leaves and bring to the boil over high heat, then turn down to a simmer and slowly reduce to a syrup consistency. Pour caramel into a jug and allow to cool before stirring through the Geraldton wax, lime juice and finger lime pearls.
6.

Carve the pork into thick slices and arrange on a platter, then pour native citrus caramel over sliced pork and serve.