easy step-by-steps to pork rack with stuffing and cracking crackling

Preparation time 30 mins plus overnight chilling and 15 mins resting Cooking time 1 hour 40 mins Serves 6

2kg 6-bone pork rack, French

trimmed, skin on

2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil

3 tsp fine salt

2 tsp sea-salt flakes

Gravy, to serve (recipe on page 46) Fried sage leaves, to garnish

PINEAPPLE AND HERB STUFFING 1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil 10g butter, chopped

½ brown onion, finely chopped 1 clove garlic, finely grated

¼ cup breadcrumbs made from

day-old sourdough

¼ cup well-drained canned

crushed pineapple in juice

2 Tbsp roughly chopped pistachios 1 Tbsp finely chopped flatleaf parsley leaves

2 tsp finely chopped sage leaves 1 free-range egg, lightly beaten Sea-salt flakes and freshly ground

black pepper, to season

STEP 1 Line a tray with plastic wrap and 2 layers of paper towel. Sit pork on top. Pat skin dry with extra paper towel. Refrigerate, uncovered, overnight or ideally 24 hours.

STEP 2 Preheat oven to 250°C fanforced (270°C conventional). Put a wire rack in a large flameproof roasting tray. STEP 3 To make stuffing, heat oil in a frying pan over medium-high heat. Add butter and onion and cook, stirring, for 5 minutes or until onion is just soft. Transfer onion and pan juices to a large bowl. Add remaining ingredients, season. Stir until combined. Set aside. STEP 4 Use a Stanley knife to score pork rind in parallel lines in same direction as bones at 8mm intervals, two-thirds of the way down into fat layer, but not cutting through to meat.

STEP 5 Use a sharp knife to make a slit just above the bones, cutting into the meat to form a deep pocket.

STEP 6 Pat pork rind dry again, then rub oil into rind, then rub in fine salt being sure to get it into each score line. Sprinkle salt flakes over the top, then press firmly onto rind.

STEP 7 Use your hands to push stuffing into pocket, then tie kitchen string firmly around pork in between each bone to hold in the stuffing. Put pork in prepared tray, rind side up.

STEP 8 Roast for 30 minutes (if oven smokes slightly, don’t worry, high temperatures cause this, just keep an eye on it). Reduce heat to 170°C fan-forced (190°C conventional) and roast for a further 45 minutes, then increase oven to 230°C fan-forced (250°C conventional) and roast for a final 20 minutes or until pork is cooked when tested and rind is well blistered.

STEP 9 Put pork on a plate and set aside dirty roast tray for gravy (recipe on page 46). Cover pork loosely with foil and set aside for 15 minutes to rest. Serve pork with gravy and fried sage leaves.

The secret to perfectly crispy crackling? Dry the skin, use a sharp knife and really rub in the salt