Basil Pesto Pork with Charred Vegetables and Crackling Shards
Sick of roast pork? This Basil Pesto Pork with Charred Vegetables and Crackling Shards is the perfect alternative. It has all the great flavour that you love about pork, including the crackling, but with some tasty additions. You can cook this in the oven or if the weather is fine, it is fabulous cooked on the barbecue.
How long will it take?
2 hours
What’s the serving size?
Serves 6
What do I need?
- 1 kg Valenca free-range boneless pork leg roast
- Salt
- 4 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tbsp red wine vinegar
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 2-3 zucchinis, sliced into rounds
- 1 fennel bulb, cut into 1cm thick slices, fronds reserved
- 1 red capsicum, cut into 6 strips
- 1 lemon, zested and cut into wedges to serve
- 1/4 tsp chilli flakes (optional)
- 150 g Hill Street Basil Pesto Dip, to serve
How do I make it?
- Remove string from the pork and unroll. Use a sharp knife to score the skin and then cut the skin from the pork. Cut skin in half and place on a tray scored-side up. Pat dry with paper towel and rub with salt. Cover with clingfilm and refrigerate.
- Cut the piece of pork horizontally in half so that you have two even thickness pieces. In a large bowl add 2 tbsp oil, 1 tbsp red wine vinegar, oregano, garlic and freshly ground black pepper. Add pork pieces and cover with clingfilm. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
- Preheat oven to 220C. Put pork skin on a rack over an oven tray and roast for 40 minutes or until golden and crispy. Remove from oven and set aside to cool.
- Reduce temperature to 180C. Add pork to oven and cook for 20 minutes. Remove from oven and put in a hot grill pan, cooking for 4 minutes per side and creating char marks. Remove from heat and cover with foil to rest.
- Toss zucchini, fennel and capsicum in 2 tbsp oil. Cook in a hot grill pan until charred. Add to a bowl and toss with lemon zest and chilli flakes.
- To serve arrange vegetables on a plate. Slice pork and add to plate. Break crackling into shards and add to plate. Drizzle pesto dip over pork and scatter plate with fennel fronds. Serve with lemon wedges.
