How to get the perfect pork crackling
With Autumn well a truly here and winter just around the corner, a comforting roast with all the trimmings is perfect weekend fare. And if it’s a pork roast, the perfect crackling is essential. Read on to find out how.
The perfect pork crackling is easy with these five steps:
1. Score
Take your pork out of its packaging and score it with a very sharp knife at 1cm intervals, being sure not to cut too deeply – you only want to score the rind, not penetrate into the meat.
2. Dry
Dry it well really with paper towels and if you have time, leave it in the refrigerator overnight, uncovered, to really dry out the rind. A few hours is ok if you’re cooking it the same day.
3. Salt
Rub the dry skin with coarse salt, being sure to get it into the cuts of the scoring as well.
4. High heat
Put your pork onto a roasting tray into a preheated 220C - 240C oven for 20 - 30 minutes. Check the pork at the 20-minute mark and you will hopefully see (and hear!) some sizzling and popping, and the crackling forming. If the whole rind is not yet crackled, continue to cook for another 10 minutes.
5. Finish
Once the crackling has formed to your liking drop the temperature down to 160C - 180C for the remainder of the cooking time*, add your veggies to the pan if desired and return to the oven. Your pork will be done when the internal temperature is 60C and the juices run clear.
*Pork cooking time can be calculated at 30 - 35 minutes per kg.
With apples in season why not try this perfect autumn dish of Roast Pork with Apples and Cider next weekend?
