Pork belly and mango salad

Pork belly is a wonderfully indulgent ingredient well-suited to roast dinners and winter feasts. Lighten it up by serving it in this delicious Vietnamese-inspired salad, perfect all year round.

Ingredients

  • 500g piece pork belly

  • 2 tbsp sea salt

  • 1 Lebanese cucumber

  • 120g baby spinach

  • 1/2 long red chilli

    finely sliced

  • 1/2 red onion

    finely sliced

  • ½ cup mint leaves

  • ½ cup coriander leaves

  • 1 mango

    sliced

  • 1 lime

    quartered

  • 1 clove garlic

    finely minced, for dressing

  • ½ tbsp caster sugar

    for dressing

  • 1 tbsp rice wine vinegar

    for dressing

  • 2 tbsp fish sauce

    for dressing

  • 1 tbsp water

    for dressing

  • 1 tbsp juice of lime

    for dressing

Equipment

  • 1 sharp blade
  • 1 shallow baking dish
  • 1 jar with a screw top lid
  • 1 large bowl

Instructions

  1. Heat oven to 240°C conventional (220°C fan-forced). Score the skin of the pork belly with a sharp blade and salt it liberally, then place in a shallow baking dish skin-side up. Bake for 15 minutes, then immediately drop oven temperature to 180°C conventional (160°C fan-forced) and cook for a further 40-50 minutes. Set aside to cool.
  2. For dressing, combine all ingredients in a jar with a screw top lid and shake well.
  3. Slice pork belly into 3cm cubes. Halve cucumber lengthwise and remove seeds. Slice on the diagonal. In a large bowl, combine cucumber, spinach, chilli, onion, herbs and mango. Drizzle over most of dressing and toss well to combine.
  4. Divide salad ingredients between four plates and distribute pork belly. Drizzle with extra dressing and serve with lime wedges.

Notes

Tip
Ask your butcher to score the skin of the pork belly. Alternatively, use a stanley knife.
Variation
If mangoes are out of season, a green mango from your Asian supermarket will be just as delicious. Slice the flesh into very thin matchsticks.

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