Rolled Pork Belly With Herby Apricot Honey Stuffing Recipes

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 220°C (430F.).
• Remove the string from the pork roasting piece and lay rind side down on your chopping board. Place the chopped fruits in the centre of the pork and then re-roll and tie tightly with string. Tie at 2cm (1 inch) intervals. We took the chopped fruits to the butcher and had them do this for us.
• Dry the rind with some paper towel. Rub the rind with the oil and then sprinkle over the salt.
• Roast for 30 mins and then reduce the oven to 200C (390F). Bake for a further 1 hour 10 minutes. Test the pork is cooked with a skewer.
• Cover with foil and stand for 20 minutes before slicing.
• Serve with baked or steamed vegetables and apple sauce.

Steps:

• Toast the spices in a dry frying pan for a couple of mins. Pound them together in a pestle and mortar with some flaked sea salt, the garlic and half the thyme to make a paste, then mix with 2 tbsp olive oil.
• Lay the pork on a board skin-side down. Rub the herb mix all over the flesh then scatter with the remaining whole thyme leaves. Neatly roll the meat into a joint surrounded by the skin then use butchers' string to tie the joint tightly at regular intervals to hold the joint together. Cover and chill, leaving to marinate for a few hours or overnight.
• When ready to cook, rub the skin of the joint with plenty of salt and 1 tbsp remaining olive oil. Put it on a wire rack and roast at 200C/180C fan/gas 6 for 30 mins. After this time, squeeze the lemons over the skin and turn the heat down to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Roast for a further 2 hrs. Finally turn the heat back up to 220C/200C fan/gas 7 and give it a final blast for another 30 mins or so, to finish the crisping of the skin. Allow to rest somewhere warm for 20 mins. Carve up into thick slices and serve with your favourite roast dinner accompaniments.