Jerked Pork Pork with plantain fritters and chutney

Raw Pork Belly with a ripe plantain, hotter than hell habanero and ginger root 

The Canadian winter in the Ottawa valley begins sometime in November and can strength, long, cold, white through to April.  The trees are nuded by the cold and wind, the grass browned, the fields, street roads blanketed in growing and shrinking piles of snow.   And those local crops that can be are stored in dark root cellars; I love those root cellar vegetables, they are the flavours of winter and carry the body through the long cold.  But every so often, I need to escape the flavours of winter, to break away from the weigh of the root cellar and taste something which conjures up hot flavours, the hot sun.

Not to lose all touch with the winter, this recipe combines the flavours of the sun with the remnants of the harvest put away against the winter.  Recently, poor cuts of meat have become more and more popular; although I’m not sure that cured and smoked pork belly becoming bacon could be more popular, its base product, then raw untreated belly, isn’t something which traditionally found its way into the kitchen.  If you can’t find pork belly, which is usually available either from a good butcher shop or can be found in an Chinese market, you can substitute pork shoulder.

This is something like a Canadian escape to the Caribbean, at least in taste, for a night. 

This is a recipe that requires several days, although not much time on any given day.  The finished pork can easily be portioned, frozen and be used at another time.  I’m offering two variations on the chutney to accompany the pork: the curried rhubarb is one which I usually make in the late spring and can over the winter; mangoes are available for a longer time, and I use fresh mangoes for this chutney, however, its just as easy to use mango which are preserved from the summer or fall.  Finally, I’m including a plantain fritter, but the pork can be as easily served with sweet potato frites.

Begin by carefully removing the rind from the meat and scoring the meat on both sides.  Marinate overnight; this is an aggressive marinade, so I don’t think the pork needs more than a night in the marinade.  After the pork belly has been braised, let it cool in the braise and then weigh it down over night.  This give the belly a better texture to serve.

The jerked, braised pork belly, resting in its fat and spices

Jerked, Slow Braised West Indies Pork Belly,

served with curried rhubarb or mango chutney and plantain fritter

for the marinade:

8 Tbsp. allspice berries                                 2 cinnamon sticks

2 Tbsp. mustard seed                                    2-3 habernao peppers, chopped

2 Tbsp. garlic, chopped                                8 Tbsp. ginger, chopped

4 Tbsp. thyme, basil, parsley                       4 Tbsp.  brown sugar

1 cup orange juice                                         4 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce

2 Tbsp. soya sauce                                       8 Tbsp. lime juice                                    

Toast the allspice, cinnamon stick and mustard seed; grind.  Combine all the ingredients.  Marinate the pork belly for 4-6 hours or overnight.

for the west indies masala:

6 Tbsp. coriander seeds                               1 Tbsp. Fenugreek seeds

2 Tbsp. fennel seeds                                     1 Tbsp. mustard seeds

1 1/2 Tbsp. cumin seeds                              2 Tbsp.  turmeric

1 Tbsp. allspice

Roast all the ingredients except the turmeric together; grind to smooth.  Add the turmeric.

for the braise:

2 cups onions chopped                               2 Tbsp.  garlic, minced*

2 cups tomatoes chopped (canned are ok), chopped

1 habanero seeded or 3-4 jalapeno minced

½ cup veg oil                                                2 Tbsp. masala

3 cups chicken stock – to just cover 

Sauté the onions, garlic and peppers; add the masala and cook for another 5 minutes.  Add the tomatoes, stock, bring to a boil and pour over the belly.  Cover, braise at 300° for 2 - 2 1/2 hours until tender.

*I buy 25 pounds of local garlic in the fall and use it over the winter.  The thing that brothers most people about garlic is its core, which is bitter and cause indigestion.  When using garlic always check to see if there is a core and remove before using.

Hot, spicy pork belly with crispy plantain fritters and curried chutney

for the chutney:

1 cup apple cider vinegar                             ¼ cup each orange and lemon juice

1 cups brown sugar                                       1 tsp. mustard seed

1 tsp. red pepper flakes                                 ½ tsp. cinnamon

1 cup red onions, minced                             2 Tbsp. ginger, minced

1 Tbsp.  garlic, minced                                ¼ cup lime, seeded, chopped

6 cups mango - hard - peeled and chopped

Combine all the ingredients, except the mango, bring to a boil, lower heat and simmer for about 15-20 minutes.  Add the mango and continue to simmer until the mango is tender - about 20 minutes.

for the plantain fritter:

2 ripe plantain                                                          1 cup of masa harina

1 tsp. baking powder                                              ¼ cup shallots, minced

2 Tbsp. each garlic, ginger, minced                    2 Tbsp. butter

1-2 Tbsp. Caribbean masala                                salt and pepper to taste

Depending on how ripe the plants are, either mash or roast until soft and mash; set aside.  Sauté the shallots, garlic and ginger together until soft; add the masala, taste for spice, cooking for an additional 3-5 minutes.  Adjust the seasoning.  Form into dumplings, crust (below) and fry to serve.

for the crust:

1 cup cornmeal                                                       1 Tbsp. Caribbean masala

1 tsp. cumin seed, roasted, ground                     2 tsp. salt

½ tsp. black pepper

Combine all of the ingredients.