Philippines
Lechon
The festive roast – centrepiece of every fiesta
No Filipino celebration without lechon: the whole suckling pig, turned on a spit over embers, with glass-crisp skin. The Spanish brought the technique, yet on the islands it became a symbol of abundance and celebration – at Christmas, weddings, baptisms.
Cebu is considered the lechon capital; the travelling chef Anthony Bourdain once called the pig there the best he had ever eaten. At home the idea works best as crispy pork belly from the oven – without a spit, but with the same crackling.
Ingredients
- Pork belly in one piece1.5 kg
- Garlic1 bulb
- Lemongrass (tanglad)3 stalks
- Spring onions1 bunch
- Bay leaves3
- Salt & peppergenerous
- Lechon sauce (Mang Tomas)to serve
★ = available authentic in the Asia Boutique
Preparation
Score the meat side, season with garlic, pepper and bay. Lay on the lemongrass and spring onion, roll up tightly and tie.
Pat the rind dry and salt it generously – that's the key to the crackling.
Roast slowly at 160 °C for about 2 hrs, until the meat is tender.
Raise the temperature to 230 °C for 25–30 min, until the skin puffs and turns glassy-crisp.
Rest for 10 min, slice. Serve with lechon sauce.
Make it original
Crispy crackling calls for the sweet-savoury liver-based lechon sauce. Without it the typical taste is missing.