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One of my favorite restaurants in Rochester has pork belly skewers that are literally so good that it’s hard for me to ever want to go to any other restaurant. But my boyfriend recently got a Costco membership and we saw that they had pork belly there! I decided to make an interesting little pork belly recipe so we could have some at home. I brainstormed some ideas for a few weeks and came up with these perfect little pork belly bites! They’re crispy and chewy and pair perfectly with the spicy wasabi mayo and crunchy veggies! Honestly, the whole family loved them and I’m excited to serve them at family gatherings for years to come!
We tried cooking these a bunch of different ways to make them a bit more melt-in-your-mouth, but this recipe was simple and I actually preferred the chewy-crunch of these guys. Even my little brother that is the pickiest eater of the family, chowed down a bunch of these. I also think these would also be AMAZING with some homemade kimchi! I’ve been meaning to make another batch soon – so this might give me the push I need.
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Ingredients for Pork Belly Bites:
- white sugar
- red wine vinegar
- rice vinegar
- water
- kosher salt
- jalapeno
- crushed red pepper
- bay leaf
- juniper berries
- whole black peppercorn
- fresh thyme
- fresh ginger
- radishes
- pork belly
- garlic
- green onions
- beef stock
- avocado oil
- brown sugar
- honey
- soy sauce
- fish sauce
- sesame oil
- kewpie mayo
- hot wasabi sauce (or wasabi powder or paste – but I think the sauce tastes best)
- fresh lemon juice
- english cucumber
- toasted sesame seeds
- 3-4″ skewers
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- 1.5 lb pork belly
- 2 inch piece of ginger, unpeeled, chopped into rounds
- 6 cloves garlic, halved
- 8-10 fresh thyme sprigs
- 2 green onions, chopped into large pieces
- 3 tsp kosher salt
- beef stock, low sodium
- 1-2 tbsp avocado oil
- 3/4 cup brown sugar
- 1 tbsp honey
- 3/4 cup soy sauce
- 1/4 cup rice vinegar
- 1 tsp fish sauce
- 1 tsp sesame oil
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 tbsp ginger, grated
- beef stock, low sodium
- 1 cup white sugar
- 3/4 cup red wine vinegar
- 1/4 cup rice vinegar
- 1 cup water
- 1 tbsp kosher salt
- 1 jalapeno, halved
- 1 bay leaf
- 1/2 tbsp juniper berries
- 1/2 tbsp whole black peppercorn
- 3 thyme sprigs
- pinch crushed red pepper
- 3 large radishes
- 3 inch ginger
- 1/4 cup kewpie mayo
- 2 tbsp wasabi sauce (adjust depending on preference)
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1/4 tsp kosher salt
- couple of squeezes fresh lemon juice
- 1-2 large english cucumbers
- toasted sesame seeds
- chopped fresh green onions
- 3-4" skewers
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Cut skin off pork belly and slice pork into 2” cubes.
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Combine pork belly, 2” piece of ginger sliced into rounds, 6 cloves garlic – halved, 8-10 fresh sprigs of thyme, 2 green onions – chopped, 3 tsp kosher salt in deep sauce pot and cover with beef stock.
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Cover and bring to a boil then reduce and simmer for 5 minutes.
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Drain and separate pork pieces and discard the rest.
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Pat pork pieces dry – moisture causes bad sear.
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Heat 1-2 tbsp of avocado oil over medium/high heat.
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Add pork belly pieces and cook on all sides until brown. (Pork fat pops a bit so be careful of the splatter!)
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Add 3/4 cup brown sugar and 1 tbsp honey.
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Turn heat to low and cook until is caramelizes and thickens. Stirring regularly.
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Once it has thickened, make sure every piece is coated.
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In a separate bowl, combine 3/4 cup soy sauce, 1/4 cup rice vinegar, 1 tsp fish sauce, 1 tsp sesame oil, 3 garlic cloves – minced, and 1 tbsp ginger – grated.
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Add this mixture to pot once brown sugar and honey have caramelized.
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Stir consistently for 3-4 minutes.
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Add one cups of beef stock or water. (Add more if necessary.)
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Bring to a simmer and cover for 20 minutes.
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Uncover, increase heat to medium and let liquid reduce to a glaze – about 10 minutes.
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Remove pork belly pieces. Save extra glaze for serving, if desired.
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Combine white sugar, red wine vinegar, rice vinegar, water, kosher salt, jalapeno, crushed red pepper, bay leaf, juniper berries, black peppercorn, and thyme in medium saucepan and bring to a boil. (Everything except the ginger and radishes.)
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Reduce to a simmer and simmer for 5 minutes.
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Remove from heat and let it sit for another 5 minutes.
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Peel ginger and cut into matchsticks.
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Soak ginger matchsticks in a bowl of water for 20-30 minutes then strain.
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Cut radishes into matchsticks.
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Place ginger (after soaking in water) and radishes into mason jar.
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Strain hot pickling liquid into mason jar until full.
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Seal jar and refrigerate. Preferably at least overnight but you can use them after a few hours if necessary.
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Combine 1/4 cup kewpie mayo, 2 tbsp wasabi sauce, 1 clove garlic – minced, 1/4 tsp kosher salt, and a couple squeezes of fresh lemon juice and stir well.
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I scooped mine into a ziplock bag and cut off the end so i could use that to squeeze the mayo onto each piece of pork belly.
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Use peeler or mandoline to cut long thin strips of english cucumber.
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Fold the cucumber back and forth over itself and insert skewers through.
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Add small amount of wasabi mayo to top of piece of pork belly and insert skewer with cucumber over top.
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Add more wasabi mayo on top of cucumber by the skewer.
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Add some pieces of pickled radish and ginger.
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Top off with toasted sesame seeds, chopped scallions, and extra glaze if desired.
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