CRISP PORK BELLY GADO GADO WITH THREE-SEED SAUCE

SERVES 4 / PREPARATION 20 MINUTES / COOKING 1 HOUR 35 MINUTES

Classic Indonesian gado gado salad can be made into more of a meal with the addition of some extra protein and I love the crunch of crisp pork belly. Serve with a nut-free peanut-style sauce, made with seeds instead. Start this recipe the day ahead to dry out the pork skin and soak the seeds.

1 tablespoon soy sauce 2 tablespoons Shaoxing wine 500g pork belly, well scored 2 teaspoons salt

500g small waxy potatoes 1 tablespoon sunflower oil 200g green beans

½ cup green cabbage, finely sliced ½ cup red cabbage, finely sliced ¼ cucumber, sliced

1 cup bean sprouts

100g fried tofu puffs, sliced three-seed sauce (recipe follows) a handful of fried curry leaves

or chopped coriander Put the soy sauce and Shaoxing wine in a dish that just holds the pork belly and put the pork on top, skin side up, mixing around a little to coat the flesh. Cover with a paper towel and leave overnight in the fridge.

Heat the oven to 160℃.

Remove the pork belly and put on a rack over a roasting tray filled with about 2cm water. Rub the salt all over the skin. Roast for 1 hour then remove from the oven and scrape the salt off the top. Increase the temperature to about 240℃. Roast the pork for another 30 minutes to get a good crackling, checking every 10 minutes in case it is burning. Rest for at least 10 minutes before slicing thinly.

Boil the potatoes in water until tender. Drain and cool. Cut the potatoes in half. Heat the oil in a frying pan, add the potato with a good sprinkle of salt and cook until browned. Cook the beans in boiling water until just tender, then drain and refresh with cold water.

Arrange the beans, potatoes, cabbage, cucumber, bean sprouts and fried tofu puffs on a platter. Top with the pork slices. Pour over the sauce and scatter over fried curry leaves or chopped coriander.

CREDITS Maquette Ceramic Table Sculpture 2 and salad bowls by Gidon Bing Ceramics from Good Form; wooden tumblers from Walk in the Park; Mapu tofu bowl (top) by Richard Naylor Ceramics; Mapu tofu bowl (bottom) and dinner plates by Rachel Carter Ceramics. All other props stylist’s own. For full details, see Credits Index.