Stuffed roast pork belly with apple sauce

This majestic joint is easy to master, and is sure to be a recipe you turn to time and again.

By The GH Kitchen TeamPublished: 15 December 2013

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stuffed roast pork belly with apple sauce

Good Housekeeping

Preparation Notes: plus cooling and resting

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Yields:

Prep Time:

30 mins

Cook Time:

2 hrs 30 mins

Total Time:

3 hrs

Ingredients

2
(4½lb) large and thin piece of pork belly without bones - see GH Tip
1 Tbsp.
olive oil, plus extra to rub over the joint
1
onion, finely chopped
100 g
(3½oz) couscous
250 g
(9oz) pork sausages
50g (2oz) dried cranberries
50 g
(2oz) dried ready-to-eat apricots, roughly chopped
1 Tbsp.
fresh sage leaves, finely sliced
50 g
(2oz) pisachios, roughly chopped
1
medium egg

For the apple sauce

4 bramley apples, about 650 g (1lb 7oz)
40 g
(1½oz) caster sugar
40 g
(1½oz) butter

You will also need

Thick cotton string

Directions

1. Step 1
  If the skin of the pork belly is not already scored, then do so with a very sharp knife (ideally ask your butcher to do this). Dry the skin well with kitchen paper and set aside.
2. Step 2
  Heat the oil in a large pan and gently cook the onion until softened, about 5min. Meanwhile, put the cous cous in a large bowl, just cover with boiling water then cover bowl with clingfilm. Set aside for 10min.
3. Step 3
  Squeeze the sausages out of the their skins (discard skins) and add to the onion pan, breaking up with a wooden spoon to get the pieces as small as possible. Cook through then take off heat to cool.
4. Step 4
  Fluff up the cous cous with a fork and add the cranberries, apricots, sage, pistachios and some seasoning. When cooled, add the sausage mixture and egg to the cous cous bowl and mix to combine
5. Step 5
  Preheat oven to 220°C (200°C fan) mark 7. Put the pork belly skin-side down on a board, with a long edge closest to you. Squeeze the stuffing into a thick line along the middle then fold the side over the stuffing and secure in place with knotted string (see GH Tip). Weigh the pork belly and calculate the cooking time - allowing 25min per 450g.
6. Step 6
  Put the rolled joint seam-side down in a roasting tin that just fits it. Rub oil all over the skin and sprinkle with salt. Roast for 20min, then turn down the heat to 180°C (160°C fan) mark 4 and continue cooking for the calculated time.
7. Step 7
  Meanwhile, make the apple sauce. Peel, core and roughly chop the apples then put into a pan with the sugar and butter. Cover with a lid, then put over low heat and cook for 15min, stirring frequently, until the apples collapse. Stir to knock out any lumps, then transfer to a serving bowl and leave to cool.
8. Step 8
  When your pork is cooked, transfer to a board, cover loosely with foil (not tightly or this will soften the crackling). Leave to rest for 20min before serving with the apple sauce.
  
  GH Tip: If your pork belly is small and deep rather than wide and thin, you'll find you have stuffing over. You can serve this stuffing as it is alongside the roasted joint.

Per Serving:

Calories: 917
Fibre: 2 g
Total carbs: 25 g
Sugars: 18 g
Total fat: 66 g
Saturated fat: 24 g
Protein: 56 g

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The GH Kitchen Team

A crack team of highly skilled food content producers, the GH Kitchen Team are Good Housekeeping’s resident recipe developers and all-round food obsessives. GH Kitchen Director Sarah Akhurst is our resident hosting pro and loves nothing more than putting on a foodie feast for friends. Senior Cookery Writer Alice Shields is a former pastry chef and baking fanatic who loves making bread and would have peanut butter with everything if she could. Lover of all things savoury, Senior Cookery Writer Grace Evans can be found eating nocellara olives at every opportunity, and will take the cheeseboard over dessert any time. With a wealth of professional kitchen experience between them, they’re dedicated to ensuring every Good Housekeeping recipe is the best it can be, so you can trust they’ll work every single time.

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