Reheating time: 10-15 minutes
Happy Friday! I can’t think of a better way to ring in the weekend than with tonight’s dinner. This one checks all the boxes. Ponzu is a wonderful thing- a mix of citrus, vinegar, and tamari, it’s sweet, acidic, and packed full of umami flavor. This one we made with apple cider, orange, lemon, and lime juice, rice wine, and organic tamari. Lots of ginger, garlic, lemongrass, and aromatics provide depth to the braise, and the cranberry-citrus glaze makes all the flavors really pop. The carrot mash, packed with ginger, brown butter, and Vadouvan curry, is the perfect backdrop for the tangy pork, and with a bite of those late-spring greens, the whole thing just makes me smile. Truly simple food, in essence, but the flavors are top notch. To wash it all down, a crisp frisee and endive salad, with roasted fennel, caramelized figs, and cascabel chile vinaigrette. What more could you ask for? I’m sold. Enough talking. Get in there!
For the pork belly:
We left these in nice big chunks to trap in a lot of the moisture, and to prevent the bellies from falling apart when reheating. They are super tender- the fat is nice and rendered, and the meat is braised to perfection. To reheat, slice the cold pork belly into ½” pieces, against the grain of the meat. Arrange them on a sheet tray, shingling the slices, and pop them under the broiler on low heat. Broil, on low, for 4-6 minutes, till the slices are beginning to sizzle and pop. Next, remove the tray, and spoon some of the cranberry glaze on top. Set the broiler to high, and broil the pork with the glaze until it’s caramelized and fragrant. If you’re feeling fancy, give it another round of glaze. Never a bad idea! Once it’s hot, glazed, and caramelized, it’s ready to go. Be careful, sugars get extremely hot- so make sure to use some tongs or a spatula to plate up the pork!
For the carrot mash:
To be honest, the best way to warm this is probably going to be the microwave. Scoop the carrot and ginger mash into a microwave safe vessel with a lid, and nuke it for 2-3 minutes, or until hot enough for your liking. Plate it up in an even layer on your plate- this will act as a catch-all for any juices or glaze that may drip off the rest of the components- and that’s a very good thing. All of these flavors work very well together, so don’t be afraid to mix them all up!
For the kale and swiss chard:
The first signs of summer! Leafy brassicas and chard are making an appearance, and we couldn’t be happier. These ones were simply sauteed with red miso butter, then studded with quick-pickled radishes for some texture and bite. To reheat, simplest way is to broil the greens in an even layer with the pork belly- this will bloom all the flavors, and crisp them up on top for some textural contrast. Alternatively, pop them in the microwave for a minute or two. Plate them up next to the pork belly, on top of the carrot and ginger mash. Like I said, don’t be afraid to just mix everything together!
For the salad:
Toss the leaves and veggies with the vinaigrette, season with s+p, and enjoy!
Thanks for ordering 🙂 #weareweco #dinnersolved <3