Friday, October 09, 2009

Braised Pork Belly

When the weather is cold, people would normally make a heart-warming comforting soup to satisfy their day. I, on the other hand, would make something that is braised for that matter.

A few weeks ago, we all know the typhoon came and the weather was really cold. Because of that, I made a braised pork belly dish. It is easy, so often than not, you just throw everything into the pot and let it cook low and slow.

Here are the prepared ingredients.



First of all, pat dry the pork bellies then add some olive oil inside the pot. Season them. Sear them well. You would want to make a good crust out of that sear and good flavor.



Remove the pork bellies from the pot then add in the vegetables. These are carrots, potatoes, and shallots. Sweat them. Sweating is like sauteing. You want to likely cook the vegetables to release some of their flavors.



After sweating the vegetables, deglaze the pan with some red wine.



Return the pork bellies and vegetables. First place the pork bellies at the bottom of the pot, then put the vegetables on top of it. When that is done, add some herbs *in my case, thyme* some stock and some red wine vinegar.



Bring the whole pot to a boil, then cover it and simmer it. Simmer until cook. Braised dishes are better the next day so that the flavors get to infuse with the pork.



Opinion

It has a sharp taste. I have probably added too much red wine vinegar. However, it had a good balance of flavors with the vegetables. The only thing I didn't like about the dish was that the potatoes sucked. Texture was too starchy. I think I should have roasted it instead of adding it to the braise or I shouldn't had sweat it and should have seared it instead. But all in all, it was a good cold weather dish for me.

2 comments:

no name yet said...

sosyal naman ng onions mo.. shallots! hehe.. so thats what shallot means. thanks for info :-)

Hershey said...

Shallots are technically small red onions. :D normal Filipino household usually has it :D most probably you guys use it too :P