There’s no need to head outside when you have access to delicious home recipes like our pork belly with roasted root vegetable tart.
SERVES 6–8 // COOKING TIME 2 hours 50 min
INGREDIENTS
For the pork belly
2.5 kg pork belly
2 garlic cloves, crushed
2 rosemary sprigs, picked
1 tbsp fennel seeds
1 tsp ground cumin
2 tbsp lemon juice
½ tsp sea salt
¼ tsp black pepper
For the root vegetable tart
1 sweet potato, peeled and sliced
1 beetroot, peeled and sliced
1 tbsp olive oil
2 × 24 cm squares puff pastry
250 g smooth ricotta cheese
1 carrot, peeled and ribboned
6 baby radishes, sliced
½ red onion, sliced
1 garlic clove, chopped
1 egg, beaten
½ tsp chilli flakes
METHOD
For the pork belly
1. Preheat oven to 220°C.
2. Place the pork belly on a board, skin side up, and score it with diagonal lines using a sharp knife. Place in a roasting tray.
3. In a bowl, combine the garlic, rosemary, fennel seeds, cumin, lemon juice and salt and pepper. Rub on to the top of the pork belly and into the scoring lines.
4. Roast for 20–25 minutes or until the skin has crisped.
5. Reduce the heat to 160°C and continue to roast for a further 1ó hours. Remove from the oven and allow to rest, reserving the pan juices.
For the root vegetable tart
1. Preheat the oven to 200°C and line a baking tray with baking paper.
2. Toss sweet potato and beetroot with olive oil and spread out on a baking tray. Bake for 20–25 minutes, until slightly softened.
3. Lay the puff pastry out on a lined baking tray. Spread the ricotta evenly over the pastry, leaving a 2 cm edge. Scatter the roasted vegetables, carrots, radishes, onions and garlic over the ricotta and season to taste.
4. Brush the edge of the tart with the beaten egg, scatter over the chilli flakes and bake for 15–20 minutes, or until the sides are golden and puffed. Set aside and warm up the tart in the oven 10 minutes before serving.
5. Cut the pork belly into thick slices and serve with a slice of roast vegetable tart. Garnish with fresh herbs.
Recipe & styling: Kate Turner
Photography: Samantha Pinto // HMimages.co.za
Keen for more? Opt for a one-pot wonder with this white fish bake with breadcrumb topping.
