PORK BELLY WITH APPLE WINDOWS

SERVES 8–10

I have an abiding fascination for cathedrals and ecclesiastical objects – candlesticks, altar rails, prayer stools and frescoes. I’m also drawn to hagiography (biographies of saints) even though I did not grow up remotely Catholic. So, for me, stained-glass windows are right up there with any of my other favourite objects of colour and light. This is how (and I know it’s a push!) these translucent stewed apples came to be named. They are used to dress a truly heavenly pork belly.

• 2 large fennel bulbs with stalks and fronds, roughly sliced

• 1 tbsp fennel seeds

• 3 garlic cloves, sliced

• 2 tbsp vegetable oil

• 2kg pork belly, scored by your butcher (you could do this yourself with a Stanley knife or a sharp Opinel, but you need to be pretty committed) • salt and white pepper to taste • 2 tsp flaked salt per pork slab

FOR THE APPLE WINDOWS

• 1½ cups sugar

• 1 cup water

• 6 cloves

• 3 small Granny Smith apples

1. For the best results, this recipe should begin the day before you plan to serve it. Our secret is allowing the pork belly to remain uncovered in the fridge overnight so that the skin becomes dry, making for better crackling!

2. On a baking sheet (or 2) toss the fennel, fennel seeds and garlic with the vegetable oil and spread out on the baking sheet(s). Season the flesh side of the belly with salt and white pepper. Cut the belly into 12cm x 7cm slabs. Lay the slabs belly side up on top of the fennel. Think of the fennel as props for the pork, offering it to the heat of the oven. Pack the slabs quite close together but do not overcrowd the baking sheet. Leave the pork in the fridge overnight, uncovered.

3. Take the pork out of the fridge a good hour before you plan to roast it. Spread a generous amount of flaked salt into the cuts in the skin of the belly, especially toward the edges. You will use about 2 teaspoons on each slab. Preheat the oven to 160°C. Roast the belly for 2½ hours. You could prepare the roast up to this stage an hour or more before your guests arrive.

4. To make the Apple Windows, dissolve the sugar in the water together with the cloves in a small saucepan over medium-high heat, stirring constantly. Cut slices of whole apple as thin as you can, 1–2mm thick. Plop the slices into the syrup, turn it down low and allow the apples to become translucent and glossy in the syrup, about 10–15 minutes. Set aside until ready to serve. Reheat while you are slicing the pork.

5. When you are ready to finish and serve the dish, crank the oven up to 220°C. Roast the pork in the hot oven for 20–30 minutes until the skin is crackly, blistered and crisp.

6. To serve, slice each slab into 2cm slices (the scoring of the belly can be your guide), so that each person gets 2 or 3 slices of pork belly (to start!). Arrange on a warmed platter and drape the translucent spiced Apple Windows over the pork belly, being generous with the syrup.