Roast pork and cabbage with balsamic vinegar
Serves 4-6 Preparation time 10 minutes Cooking time 90 minutes
Baked cabbage has a completely different texture and flavour to when it’s boiled. Try it with this sticky, crispy pork belly.
You need
• 1,2kg pork belly, skin removed • ½ cup (125ml) brown sugar • ½ cup (125ml) water • ½ cup (125ml) balsamic vinegar • 2 garlic cloves, crushed • ¼ cup (60ml) soy sauce • 4 spring onions, finely chopped
FOR THE CABBAGE • 1 head of cabbage • 2 garlic cloves, crushed • 2 tablespoons (30ml) olive oil • 2 tablespoons (30ml) lemon juice • ½ cup (125ml) grated Parmesan cheese • 4 tablespoons (60ml) butter
This is how
Heat the oven to 160ºC (without the fan). Cut the meat into broad strips or 3cm cubes and arrange then with the fatty side up in a 20cm x 30cm oven dish.
Combine the sugar, water, vinegar and garlic in a saucepan and slowly heat the mixture. Stir it until the sugar has dissolved, remove from the plate and pour the mixture over the pork. Cover the dish with foil and place in the oven for 30 minutes.
In the meantime, slice the cabbage into 3cm wheels and arrange them side-by-side in a shallow oven dish. Combine the garlic, olive oil and lemon juice, and brush it over the cabbage.
Increase the oven temperature to 200ºC, remove the foil from the pork and continue to bake it for a further 15 minutes, then place the dish containing the cabbage in the oven too. After 30 minutes, turn over the cabbage wheels carefully and sprinkle 1 tablespoon Parmesan cheese and a ½ teaspoon of butter over each wheel. Bake for a further 15 minutes. The meat will be crisp and sticky on the outside and soft on the inside, whereas the cabbage will be slightly firm but cooked.
Combine ½ a cup of the liquid in which the pork baked with the soy sauce and spring onions, and place the mixture on the table. Dish a cabbage wheel for each person, with a portion of the pork, and pour 1-2 tablespoons of the soy sauce mixture over. A bowl of mashed potato or steamed rice, slightly al dente, will be delicious on the side. >