Crispy Salt Cured Pork Recipe

This is a fantastic way to prepare Pork and cook Pork as it guarantees not only a crispy skin, but the most tender, flavorful Pork meat. The methods for making this Crispy Salt Cured Pork recipe is one that takes a bit of time and will need to be prepared a day in advance. The method of Salt curing is a slow one, where the Salt gradually extracts moisture from the skin (enabling it to become crispy when cooked) as well as seasoning the meat. The investment in time is well worth it, with a beautifully cooked piece of Pork that can be enjoyed in so many ways

Jump to Recipe

What is the best cut of meat to use for this dish?

When we made the dish we used Pork Loin, but another popular cut that this will work with is Pork Belly. The only caveat that we mandate is that you’re cooking the piece of Pork that still has it’s skin on. It’s strange that finding cuts of Pork with skin-on in the US is a lot more challenging than other places of the world. Crispy Pork skin is one of the most enjoyable delicacies in cooking, and in our opinion should be a mandatory addition to every piece of Pork available at the store

The differences between Pork Loin and Pork Belly is mainly the amount of fat content that resides under the skin. Pork Belly is famous for being the fattiest cut of Pork, and possibly the fattiest cut of meat you can get! Pork Loin on the other hand is less fatty but contains more meat. So theoretically, more Pork to be eaten

Crispy Salt Cured Pork Loin — You can use Pork Loin or Belly for this delicious Crispy Salt Cured Pork dish

Pork Loin does have the tendency to dry out when roasted. Especially when using a traditional cooking method to get the skin crispy (which involved cranking the heat in the early stages of roasting). By curing the Pork Loin over the course of 24 hours, the Pork becomes a lot more tender. The curing method works similarly to Pork Belly, as it will begin to help render out some of the fattier pieces of the meat

The result of this curing method for either cut of Pork is you’ll get ridiculously crispy skin, and beautiful, tender meat. It’s well worth the investment in time for the amazing flavors and textures achieved in this Crispy Salt Cured Pork dish

How to make this amazing Crispy Salt Cured Pork

The recipe is easy to make, it just requires time. The curing process takes 24 hours and has two benefits: adding flavor to the Pork meat and drying out the skin to help it get super-crispy. First, make lots of small cuts into the Pork skin with a sharp knife. Do this carefully, by stabbing down with a large, sharp knife to create slits all over the skin

Pork Skin with holes — With a sharp knife, poke loads of holes into the skin of the Pork. This will help render the fat and get that skin super-crispy

Then, get a load of Salt (about 1 cup of so) and mix it with ¼ cup of ground Black Peppercorns and Chinese Five Spice. You can also add some Szechuan Peppercorns for a bit more of a kick

Crispy Salt Cured Pork covered in Salt and Pepper — The first step of curing our Crispy Salt Cured Pork involves generously coating it in a mixture of Salt and Pepper. Refrigerate for 6 hours

Reserve more Salt for the next step

Coat the Pork generously in the Salt and Pepper mix, then refrigerate it for 6 hours. After 6 hours, remove from the refrigerator and rinse well under cold water to remove all of the Salt and Pepper. Then, simply leave the Pork uncovered on a plate in the refrigerator for 24 hours

Coating Pork with Salt — Before roasting in the oven at 180F for 1 hour, liberally coat the top of the Pork with Salt like this

When ready to cook, remove the Pork and set it at room temperature for about 30 minutes. Wrap it in Foil but leave the top side exposed (which will be the exposed skin). Add another 1 cup of Salt to the exposed skin and then roast for 45 minutes at 180F. Remove from oven and remove all the Salt from the skin. Place the Pork back under the broiler for 10 minutes to crisp it all up, and then it’s done!

What are some great ways to enjoy eating Crispy Roast Pork?

The versatility of Roast Pork is what makes it such a popular dish all around the world. Well, that and how great it tastes! This Crispy Salt Cured Pork is a great example of how versatile Pork is with home cooking, and you can enjoy it in so many ways!

Crispy Salt Cured Pork with Spicy Sauce and Lettuce — Try enjoying this amazing Crispy Salt Cured Pork along with some spicy sauce and crispy pieces of Lettuce

When we cooked this Pork we served it in sliced alongside a bunch of crispy Romaine Lettuce Leaves, some thinly cut slices of Green Apple, and a spicy Chinese Bean Paste. The combination of flavors and textures was amazing, with the fattiness of the Pork being balanced out perfectly with the Green Apple and Bean Paste. It’s a great way to serve Pork too, as you can wrap the Pork in the Lettuce leaves and eat it that way

A classic way to enjoy Crispy Roast Pork is with a simple dipping sauce. You can try the classic combination of Chinese Yellow Mustard / Hot Mustard. This is a very common and typical way Pork is served in Chinese restaurants. Or if you’ve got a sweet tooth, try replacing the mustard with something sweeter like a Plum Sauce or Hoisin Sauce

Apple and Pork always go well together. It’s an American classic pairing (Pork Chops with Apple Sauce anyone?), so whip up a simple Apple Sauce like this recipe (LINK) and serve a generous portion of it straight over the Pork. You really can’t go wrong however you want to enjoy this tasty dish!

Pork Lettuce Wraps with Green Apple — Green Apple is a great pairing with Pork. Use it as a topping to your Lettuce Wraps

The best way to cut the Pork for serving

One of the more challenging aspects for cutting Crispy Pork is trying to keep the Pork skin in a uniform shape to the beautiful meat its connected too. Because that skin is so crispy it can tend to splinter and break into shards when its sliced

A little tip to get the best presentation for your Roast Pork is to flip it over so that the crispy skin is facing the cutting board. Using a sharp, heavy knife, cut through the flesh until you reach the Pork skin (otherwise known as Crackling) at the bottom. Then, just press firmly down onto the knife and it will cut into a straight line

Continue this method as you slice your way through the Pork Loin / Pork Belly. Once done, flip the pieces back over and you’ll have beautiful looking, uniform slices of delicious Pork ready to be enjoyed!

There’s no need to add any more seasoning to the Pork once it’s cooked and sliced either. The curing process ensures the entire piece of Pork has been thoroughly seasoned throughout. So, simply serve it up with your favorite condiments and sides and enjoy!

Recipe Details

Servings

2 – 4 people

Prep time

1 day, 6 hours

Cooking time

1 hour

Total time

1 day, 7 hours