Pair slow-cooked pork belly with tart plums for a match made in heaven in this one-tin dish that’s packed with flavour. It’s a great way to use summer plums
Prep:10 mins
Serves 4
900g-1kg pork belly slicesthumb-sized piece of ginger, finely grated3 garlic cloves, grated or crushed1½ tsp Chinese five-spice powder50ml soy sauce2 tbsp honey2 tbsp light brown soft sugar2 tbsp Shaohsing rice wine, rice wine vinegar or dry sherry2 star anise6 plums, halved and stoned6 spring onions, cut into 3cm piecescoriander leaves, to servecooked rice and stir-fried greens, to serve
STEP 1Heat the oven to 190C/170C fan/gas 5. Lay the pork belly slices in a single layer in a large roasting tin. Combine the ginger, garlic, five-spice powder, soy sauce, honey, sugar and rice wine, and pour the mixture over the pork, turning the pieces until well-coated. Scatter in the star anise, then cover the tin with foil and roast for 1 hr.STEP 2Remove the foil, scatter over the spring onions and nestle the plums in the tin, cut-side up. Spoon some of the sauce over the pork, onions and plums, and return to the oven for 30 mins.STEP 3Remove the tin from the oven. Turn the pork slices over using tongs. If the spring onions are starting to catch, push them under the pork slices. Turn the heat up to 220C/200C fan/gas 7 and roast for another 15 mins, or until the pork is tender and caramelised – don’t worry if it chars slightly, as this will add flavour. Scatter over the coriander leaves and serve with rice and stir-fried greens, with the sauce from the tin spooned over.
