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Crispy Braised Pork Belly & Gulf Shrimp

by ,

Photo by Brian Pavlich

Yield: 8 servings

Ingredients:

4 lb. pork belly, poached and chilled (see steps 1 and 2 in method below)
1 medium onion, sliced
2 stalks of celery, cut into 1-inch pieces 
1 orange, sliced
1 cup orange juice 
3 cups chicken stock
2.5 lb. U12 Gulf shrimp, peeled and deveined (leave tails on)
4 tbsp. olive oil
5 garlic cloves, sliced thin
chilies: 4 serranos or 2 large jalapeños, sliced into rings
24 whole basil leaves
zest of 1 orange
4 lb. heirloom tomato or any delicious tomato, sliced 1/2-inch thick
For orange reduction:
2 cups orange juice
1/4 cup champagne vinegar 
1/2 cup sugar

Method:

For orange reduction:

Bring orange juice, sugar, and vinegar to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Remove from heat when the liquid has reduced by half. Set this aside to finish the dish.

For poached pork belly:

  1. Sprinkle pork belly generously with salt and pepper. Let stand for 1 hour.
  2. Put in shallow roasting pan with sliced onions, celery, orange slices, 1 cup orange juice, and chicken stock. Make sure liquid just covers the pork belly. Cover in tin foil and cook in a 300º F oven for approximately 3 hours. Check for doneness by inserting a fork and seeing if meat pulls apart effortlessly. When done, carefully remove from liquid and chill for at least 2 hours. This allows the belly to firm up and be cut into rashers (slices) without the meat falling apart.
  3. Cut pork belly into 1-inch-thick rashers against the grain. Season with salt and pepper. In a large smoking hot pan, sear the rashers until they are caramelized and crispy on both sides.They will render a lot of fat. When they are caramelized on both sides, remove from pan and set aside. You will have to do this in batches, periodically removing the fat from the pan.
  4. When the pork is done, season and sear the shrimp in the same pan using some of the pork fat. Make sure the pan is smoking hot. Again, you will have to do this in 2 batches so that the pan doesn’t become overcrowded.You want the shrimp to get good color and not to steam. Remove shrimp and set aside.
  5. In the same pan add 4 tbsp. of olive oil; and right when it starts to smoke, add the sliced garlic. When the edges of the garlic start to slightly brown, add the chilies, then the basil leaves, then toss or stir around in the hot oil. The basil leaves will pop, so stand back a bit. Immediately add the orange zest and dump out into a bowl to prevent further cooking. You want the garlic toasted, not burnt.

To plate:

  1. On eight individual plates, place a couple of tomato slices, seasoned with salt and pepper. On top of each pile of tomatoes, place 2 crispy pork belly rashers and 3 shrimp, layered on top of each other.
  2. Divide the garlic, basil, chili, and orange zest mixture among the 8 plates. Spoon over the top, making sure every plate gets a little bit of everything, especially the crispy basil.
  3. Finish each plate with a drizzle of the orange reduction and serve.
 
Chefs David and Torre Solazzo will be on hand to serve this dish to the happy crowd at the 2015 Small Town Chefs Awards on June 25 at the Louisiana Culinary Institute. Tickets on sale now.
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