Pork rillettes

Name: Pork rillettes
Cook time: 2 h 30 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: French
Ingredients: 1kg boneless pork belly (or shoulder), skin off (a fatty cut is best) - alternatively you could use duck legs; 8 garlic gloves, peeled; 1 sprig thyme; 3 bay leaves; 3 juniper berries; 1 cinnamon stick; salt and pepper; 300ml chicken stock; 1 tbsp olive oil; 1 orange; 4 slices sourdough

Mark LeBrooy and Darren Robertson

June 11, 2020

Snack attack: The Blue Ducks' pork rillettes pictued with crunchy pear and fennel salad.Edwina Pickles

Time:2 hours +Serves:4

It's great having pork rillettes in the fridge, ready for an unexpected visit from a hungry friend, or as a tasty mid-afternoon snack, spread thickly on a toasted slice of sourdough. We like to keep the spices classic and simple but you can also add preserved lemon, chilli, smoked salt or fresh herbs (once it's cooled).

Ingredients

1kg boneless pork belly (or shoulder), skin off (a fatty cut is best) - alternatively you could use duck legs
8 garlic gloves, peeled
1 sprig thyme
3 bay leaves
3 juniper berries
1 cinnamon stick
salt and pepper
300ml chicken stock
1 tbsp olive oil
1 orange
4 slices sourdough

Method

1. Put the pork belly in a roasting tin with the whole garlic cloves, herbs, juniper berries, cinnamon, salt and pepper. Add the chicken stock, cover with foil and roast for three hours at 160C. When cooked, the meat will be soft to the touch.
2. Pour the fat and juices into a bowl, removing the thyme, juniper berries, cinnamon bay leaves.
3. Put the garlic cloves into a small bowl and mash with a fork.
4. Put the pork into a large bowl and gently prise it apart with a fork. Mix in the mashed garlic and olive oil, then stir through the fat and juices, reserving a little for the topping.
5. Put the rillettes into a serving bowl, top with the reserved fat, ground pepper and a little orange zest and chill.
6. Brush the sourdough with olive oil, toast under a grill and serve with rillettes. Pickles go well, too.
Tip: Cool the pork slightly before uncovering it, so the juices don't evaporate.
Serve with our pear and charred fennel salad