The Dinner Challenge Day 1 : Roast Pork Belly with Baked Potato Wedges

My project this week is to make use of the ingredients I currently have (We haven't done the grocery in 2 weeks so go figure!) and cook up hearty and flavorful dinners. My creativity will be put to test...

Day 1 : Monday - Roast Pork Belly and Baked Wedges

There was a frozen pack of pork belly I bought from H Mart and I was contemplating what to do with it. I asked hubby if he wanted something Filipino or something else. As usual, he didn't want to decide so I had to come up with an idea. I figured I wanted to use the oven for it so a roast would be ideal and since I was gonna use it already, I might as well create a baked siding. So I decided to use the 4 red potatoes to go with the pork roast.

ROAST PORK BELLY

Sea Salt & Pepper

Fresh Thyme

1 carrot , chopped (just make sure they are all even in size)

1 medium sized onion, chopped

1 celery stalk, chopped

1 cup beef stock

cornstarch and a bit of water

1. Preheat Oven 400 degrees F.

2. Place Pork on a cutting board skin side up and with a sharp knife, make scores thru the skin into the fat. Season with salt, pepper and thyme leaves.

3. Transfer to a roasting pan and roast for about 30 minutes until the skin starts to crack.

4. Lower heat to 300 degrees F and roast for another hour.

5. Take out the excess fat from the pan and take out pork.

6. Place vegetables on the bottom and put back the pork on top.

7. Bring back inside the oven for another hour basting once in a while.

8. Take out pork and set aside (you can wrap it in foil to rest)

9. Pour stock into the vegetables (with all the sticky and burnt bits!) and bring to a boil.

10. Add the water and cornstarch mixture and continue simmering.

11. You will get a rather dark gravy that will be perfect for your roast.

12. Serve with a spoonful of mustard.

BAKED POTATO WEDGES

4 medium potatoes (in my case I used red potatoes and cut them into wedges)

salt and pepper

grapeseed oil

paprika

parmesan cheese, grated

1. Wash potatoes and peel if need be (in my case, I kept the skin on) and cut into desirable size

2. Pat dry with paper towel and mix with all dry ingredients.

3. Lay them down on a single layer and drizzle with oil.

4. Bake for 30 mins at 300 degrees F or until potatoes are soft and achieved.