Crispy Pork Belly (Air Fryer Method)
This crispy pork belly is made in the air fryer with no overnight drying required! It's easy and uses just a handful of ingredients that get you tender, juicy meat and irresistibly crispy skin in under 1 hour!
Servings: 6
Calories: 791kcal
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 lbs skin-on pork belly
- 1 teaspoon five spice powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon white pepper
- 1 ½ teaspoon Shaoxing wine
- 1 teaspoon white vinegar
- 1 tablespoon salt for the salt crust
- ½ teaspoon neutral oil
Instructions
- Using a sharp knife, cut 1 inch slits halfway into the meat side of the pork belly. This helps the marinade penetrate deeper.
- Parboil the pork belly by adding 1 inch of water to a pot and bringing it to a boil. Add in the pork belly, meat side down, making sure the pork belly skin sits above the water and remains dry. Parboil for 5 minutes to draw out impurities. After 5 minutes, remove the pork belly and pat it dry.
- Mix together five spice powder, ½ teaspoon salt, white pepper, and Shaoxing wine until it forms a paste. It'll be thick and fragrant. Set aside.
- Using a toothpick, fork, or meat tenderizer, prick small punctures into the pork skin, being careful not to puncture deeper than the skin.
- Rub the five spice paste all over the meat side only, working it into the slits.
- Wrap the pork belly in foil so the meat is fully covered but the skin is facing up and fully exposed. Brush the skin with vinegar and allow it to dry for a few seconds.
- Add the salt over the pork belly skin so it's even and well coated. Press down lightly to pack it.
- Air fry at 200F for 10-15 minutes or until the salt crust is completely dry and can be picked up.
- Remove the salt crust and brush off any remaining excess salt with a paper towel. Lightly brush the skin with neutral oil and air fry at 400F for 10-15 minutes until the skin is puffed up and crispy. If there are parts of the skin that is browning faster than others, cover it with foil to keep it from burning.
- Let it rest for 10 minutes before cutting into slices. Enjoy with banh hoi, fresh herbs and veggies, and nuoc mam cham!
Notes
- Choose the right cut of pork belly! Grocery stores sell all types of pork belly but you must buy the pork belly with the skin on! This is where the crackly skin comes from. I usually purchase skin on pork belly with the rib and cut off the rib at home to eat separately, since it is the most affordable. However, skin on pork belly with no rib works too!
- When choosing a pork belly cut, be sure to look for one that has a good ratio of fat to meat. Too much fat will cause the dish to feel too heavy. I like getting cuts that are more on the meaty side with a little bit of fat.
- Choose evenly leveled pork belly slabs. Pork belly from the grocery store comes in 1-2 inch wide pieces. I like to purchase skin on pork belly with the rib attached, so I can cut it off horizontally and create a leveled pork belly. Pork belly with the rib removed will usually hold up unevenly, when the meat is standing up. To get an even cook, we want to level out the meat so it has a flat surface. To fix this, you can either cut the meat so even it out, or do what my dad does and add slices of apple underneath to balance it out. Alternatively, you can fold up some extra foil and place it underneath the lower side to prop it up.
- Dry the skin well. This ensures a crispy skin that won't get tough, dry and chewy.
- Prick the skin more than you think you need to! Use multiple toothpicks or a fork to create small punctures in the skin, being careful not to prick deeper than the skin. Pricking holes will allow the fat in the skin to render out and puff up to create that crispy pork skin.
Nutrition
Calories: 791kcal | Carbohydrates: 1g | Protein: 14g | Fat: 81g | Saturated Fat: 29g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 9g | Monounsaturated Fat: 38g | Cholesterol: 109mg | Sodium: 1405mg | Potassium: 290mg | Fiber: 0.1g | Vitamin A: 17IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 13mg | Iron: 1mg
