Pork scratchings with baked apple purée

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The key to a great pork scratching is a good level of crunch, something Richard Davies achieves perfectly in this pork scratchings recipe. He uses a few cheffy techniques to pull this off – cooking the pork belly skin in a dehydrator or low oven to dry out the skin before deep frying for the ultimate, satisfying crunch.

First published in 2015

Ingredients

Metric

Imperial

Pork scratchings

Baked apple purée

Equipment

  • Deep fat fryer
  • Liquidiser
  • Fine chinoise
  • Dehydrator

Method

1
Trim any excess fat from the pork belly skin, then add to a pan of cold water and bring to a simmer. Cover with a cartouche and cook for 2 hours, or until you can pinch through the skin. Drain away the liquid and allow to cool slightly
2
Lay the skin out on a non-stick baking mat and place in the dehydrator, or oven, at 60°C. Leave to dry for 6-8 hours or until dry, hard and snap-able
3
Break the crispy skin into small pieces, then fry in a deep-fryer at 180°C until puffed up and crispy. Drain and season to taste
  • rapeseed oil, or sunflower oil, for frying
  • salt
4
Preheat the oven to 190°C/gas mark 5
5
Place the apples on a non-stick baking mat and cook in the oven for 25-35 minutes, or until cooked and tender. Transfer to a liquidiser, blitz until smooth and pass through a fine choinois
6
Serve the pork scratchings with the apple purée in a small bowl alongside
First published in 2015
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Richard Davies’ celebrated career in gastronomy was set in motion by a frank chat with his headmaster at the age of fifteen.

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