Slow Cooker Confit Pork Belly

Using a slow cooker makes it simple to cook pork belly that is succulent and tender. Finishing it off in the oven ensures that crunchy crackling we all fight over.

A couple of years ago, my mom and I were traveling together in France so we made a quick stopover in Jersey, one of the islands in the English Channel. At a pub lunch one day, I ordered the confit pork belly and we both swooned. I knew it was just a matter of time before I’d recreate that dish.

The first time I made it, I also added a bunch of peeled garlic cloves to the slow cooker about three quarters of the way through the cooking time and served them, all soft and mellow, alongside the pork. I also left the skin tender since I was trying to duplicate the dish we'd enjoyed at the pub. Divine!

The second time, I left out the garlic and served the confit pork belly with a spicy chutney I’d made from nectarines, kumquats and habanero peppers. And, I added the oven step to make the crackling crunchy. This became our favorite.

The spicy sweet and sharp chutney is the perfect accompaniment to the melt-in-your-mouth pork.

Slow Cooker Confit Pork Belly

Confit is a method of slow cooking meat in its own fat but in this recipe, I use canola oil instead of lard. The oil can be strained through a clean cloth and stored in the refrigerator in a sterilized jar, to be used to make this dish a second time.

Ingredients
1 lb 10 oz or 750g pork belly, skin on
Canola oil to cover (about 3-4 cups or 720-960ml)
Sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper

Method
If your butcher has not already done this, score the skin of the pork belly with a sharp knife. Rub it liberally with the salt on both sides. Set it in the refrigerator uncovered for a couple of hours or overnight.

Transfer the pork belly skin side up to your slow cooker and pour in enough canola oil to just cover it.

Set it to cook on low for four hours. Turn the pork belly over and cook for an additional two hours. Since the pork belly chuffs up while cooking, it won't be covered with oil any more.

Remove the pork belly from the slow cooker and place it on an ovenproof baking pan. Use the broil (US) or grill (UK) function in your oven to cook the skin till crunchy. Keep a close eye on it so that it doesn’t burn. This doesn't take long.

Sprinkle on a little more salt and a few good grinds of black pepper. Slice the confit pork belly to serve. I also recommend accompanying it with something sweet and spicy, like my nectarine kumquat habanero chutney.

Enjoy!

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Chorizo Shrimp Corn Chowder #FishFridayFoodies

Spicy smoky chorizo and succulent shrimp are the best addition to a creamy corn chowder. Warm yourself up with a steaming bowl of chorizo shrimp corn chowder tonight.

Several years ago, I made a recipe from a friend and fellow blogger that had us ooo-ing and ah-ing. I saved the link and the instructions because I knew I’d want to make it again. But, of course, time and new recipes to try got in the way of that happening.

That delicious recipe came to mind again when I saw that the theme for this month’s Fish Friday Foodies was Out of the Shell and into the Pan. It was time to peel some shrimp! I switched out the bacon for some spicy smoky Spanish chorizo and used frozen corn instead of fresh. Oh, and I added cayenne because we really do like things spicy. But otherwise, this is very much like Susan made it originally.

Chorizo Shrimp Corn Chowder

Packed with flavor, this warming bowl of goodness is just the sort of comfort food we all need in chilly January.

Ingredients
8 1/2 oz or 240g hot and smoky chorizo, skin removed, diced
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 small green bell pepper, diced
1 large potato
2 garlic cloves, minced
5 1/4 cups or 740g fresh or frozen corn kernels
3 cups or 720ml chicken stock
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
a few good grinds black pepper
1/4-1/2 teaspoon ground cayenne
12 1/4 oz or 347g jumbo shrimp (weight after peeling and deveining)
1 cup or 240ml whole milk

Method
In a Dutch oven or another thick-bottomed pot, cook your chorizo pieces over a medium heat, stirring often, until they are a little bit crunchy. They will release some gorgeous red oil. Tip in the chopped onion and bell pepper and lower the heat a little.

Sauté until the onion is translucent and the pepper has softened, stirring occasionally.

Meanwhile, peel and cube your potato and cover it with cool water in a small bowl, so it doesn’t turn brown.

Add the garlic to the pot and cook for a minute or so, then drain the water off of the potato and add it to the pot as well, stirring well.

Add the corn kernels to the mixture in the Dutch oven, then pour in the chicken stock. Season with the salt, black pepper and cayenne.

Bring the whole pot to the boil then reduce the heat and simmer with the lid on for about 25 minutes. Remove the pot from the stove and allow to cool for a few minutes, uncovered.

Use a slotted spoon to remove about 2 cups of vegetables and chorizo from the pot.

Blend the rest using a hand blender or in batches in your blender.

Add the shrimp to the pot and put it back on the stove over a low heat. Cook for a few minutes or just until the shrimp are pink.

Add the removed vegetables back to the pot, the pour in the milk and stir well.

Heat through again. Taste the chowder and add more salt, black pepper and cayenne, if necessary.

Serve in bowls, making sure that each person gets a few of the shrimp. Garnish with some parsley or cilantro, if desired. Some toasted crusty bread for dipping is also a fine idea.

Enjoy!

Check out the other shellfish dishes we are sharing today. Many thanks to our host, Camilla of Camilla’s Cooking Adventures for this great theme.

An InLinkz Link-up

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Double Soda Pretzels #BreadBakers

Soda bread dough, dipped in baked-baking-soda water, turns into the most delightful (and easy!) treats I’m naming double soda pretzels. Brushed with melted butter and sprinkled with salt before baking, they are a warm, wonderful snack.

This month my Bread Baker friends are all making pretzels to share with you and it's my turn to host. We have an amazing line up of recipes, some quite traditional, some with twists on the classic method. Make sure to scroll down to the bottom and check out the list.

Every challenge like this one always requires some research on my part. I know that the original German pretzels call for a dip in a water bath with lye. But when one cannot source lye (or is scared to work with it) there are alternatives. The first time I made pretzels for a blog post in this space, I chose to stuff the pretzels with cheese. Definitely not traditional but that did give me the chewiness I was looking for.

This time my research led me down a different path to getting the color and chew without lye or cheese. The great and knowledgeable food scientist expert Harold McGee wrote an New York Times article back in 2010 recommending that pretzel bakers raise the alkalinity of baking soda by baking it before dissolving it in the water bath. It’s not the same strength as lye would be, but it gets closer.

And because it is damn cold where I am right now, I also decided to make a soda bread dough rather than trying to get a yeast dough to rise. But can a quick dough be as good as a yeast dough for pretzels?

The verdict: Yes, it can! This recipe/method turns out chewy pretzels with great flavor. I don’t think I’ll ever make them with a yeast dough again!

Double Soda Pretzels

I brought a couple of these double soda pretzels over to my neighbors and they earned two thumbs up. If you are not a fan of working with yeast, do give my soda bread version a try.

Ingredients
For the water bath:
2/3 cup or 185g baking soda
5 cups or ml water

For the pretzel dough:
1 cup or 240ml milk
2 teaspoons white vinegar
3 1/4 cups or 406g all-purpose flour, plus extra for rolling out
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
1/4 cup or 60ml honey

For baking:
1/4 cup or 57g butter, melted
1-2 tablespoons flakey sea salt, for topping

Method
Preheat your oven to 250°F or 121°C and line a baking pan with aluminum foil. Sprinkle the baking powder for the water bath on to the foil and bake for 1 hour. Remove from the oven and tip into a large non-aluminum stock pot with 5 cups or 1.2L water.

Bring it to the boil and then remove from the heat and put a lid on the pot.

Pour the 1 cup or 240ml milk into a 2-cup measuring vessel and add the vinegar to it. Set aside.

Preheat your oven to 400°F or 200°C and grease two (preferably non-stick) baking pans or use silicone liners.

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together your flour, baking soda and salt. Add the honey to the milk mixture and whisk till it is dissolved in the milk.

Add the milk and honey to the bowl of dry ingredients and mix until it has formed a dough.

Turn it out on a lightly floured surface. Knead it a few turns and form it in a smooth ball.

Divide the dough into 8 equal pieces. (If you are a scale user, know that mine weighed about 95g each.)

Use a little sprinkled flour and roll them like sausages until they are about 12 to 14 inches or cm long.

Form into pretzel shapes.

Overlap

Overlap again

Flip the twist up and pinch the ends down so they stick

Use a spatula to transfer them one or two at a time to the warm soda water bath for 30 seconds.

Remove them from the bath and transfer to a baking pan. Continue until all the pretzels have had 30 seconds in the soda water bath.

Brush with melted butter and sprinkle on some flakey sea salt.

Do not use parchment paper under your pretzels. Even if it is buttered, your pretzels will stick. 

Bake for 10-12 minutes or until the double soda pretzels are lovely and brown. When they come out of the oven, you can brush them with more butter, if desired.

Enjoy!

Check out all of the lovely pretzels we are sharing today! What a fabulous start to the new year.

• Authentic German Pretzels from Sara's Tasty Buds
• Ballpark Pretzels from Karen's Kitchen Stories
• Beer Pretzels from Passion Kneaded
• Buttery Pretzels from Ambrosia
• Cheddar Garlic Soft Pretzels from Palatable Pastime
• Cheese Jalapeño Stuffed Pretzel Rolls from Herbivore Cucina
• Cinnamon Sugar Pretzel Bites from Cook's Hideout
• Cinnamon Sugar Soft Pretzels from Hostess At Heart
• Double Soda Pretzels from Food Lust People Love
• German Pretzel Rolls from All That's Left Are The Crumbs
• Honey Mustard Snack Pretzels from Cindy's Recipes and Writings
• Pretzel Dogs from Sneha's Recipe
• Pretzel Sticks from A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Saffron Pretzel Rolls from The Schizo Chef
• Soft Whole Wheat Pretzels from What Smells So Good?
• Sourdough Soft Pretzels from Baking Sense
• Whole Wheat Pretzel Bites from I camp in my kitchen

#BreadBakers is a group of bread loving bakers who get together once a month to bake bread with a common ingredient or theme. Follow our Pinterest board right here. Links are also updated each month on this home page.

We take turns hosting each month and choosing the theme/ingredient.

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