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KITCHEN
2 minutes, then remove immediately to an ice water bath. Once cooled, seal the pork belly and herbs in vacuum-pack bags.
Tip: If you don’ t have a vacuum sealer, braise the pork in 3 litres of chicken stock, 500ml of white wine, 1 bay leaf, fresh herbs and 5 ml / 1 tsp salt for about four hours at 300 – 325˚F.
Photo by Ian McCausland
In this issue’ s Test Kitchen, Chef Joel Lamoureux brings sous vide cooking techniques to the masses, with a sumptuous pork belly, baked fagioli and fennel side dish. Sous vide is a French cooking technique meaning“ under vacuum.” Cooking meat in a vacuumsealed bag for long periods at low temperatures retains flavour and moisture that is lost in most other techniques. For more information about sous vide cooking, go to www. banvilleandjones. com / cellar. aspx. Sommeliers Mike Muirhead, Sylvia Jansen, and Gary Hewitt weigh in on the perfect wine pairings to this meal on page 49.
THE MEAL Ventre di maiale arosto( Roasted Pork Belly Sous Vide with Baked Fagioli) 2-1kg centre cut pieces pork belly( preferably a younger, leaner cut) Vacuum sealer and bags 2 sprigs each of fresh sage, thyme, rosemary 15ml / 1 tbsp canola oil Salt mixture( recipe follows) 15ml / 1tbsp white truffle oil( optional)
Salt mixture: In a food processor, add 15g / 1tbsp whole black peppercorns, 2 bay leafs, 6 cloves of garlic( unpeeled), fresh thyme, sage, and rosemary. Pulse until you have a paste. Add 600g of kosher salt and pulse until you have an even, aromatic salt mixture. Keep refrigerated.
Trim off excess fat on the inside of the pork belly. Lay skin-side down and cover generously with salt mixture. Let the meat cure for about 4 – 5 hours, then rinse with cold running water. Blanch pork in boiling water for
Fill a large pot with enough water to cover the bags of pork. Place a grill or inverted plate in the bottom of the pot to ensure the bags do not melt on contact with the metal bottom. Bring pot to a temperature of 79 – 80˚C / 174˚F and place the sous vide pork into the water. Stirring occasionally will keep the water at a constant temperature( the biggest challenge!). Avoid the danger zone 4 – 60˚C / 40 – 140˚F; this is the ideal environment for bacteria.
Cook for a minimum of 6 – 8 hours( for specific cooking times, see www. banvilleandjones. com / cellar. aspx). Once cooked, open the bag, pat the pork dry with a tea towel, and discard the herbs. Heat canola oil in a non-stick skillet and sear the pork on low heat. Press the pork flat with a heavy pan to prevent it from curling up. Sear slowly, allowing a crispy crust to form. Once the pork is nicely seared, finish in a 375˚F oven for 15 – 20 minutes to warm through; slice and serve. To finish, garnish pork with truffle oil and fried sage.
Baked Fagioli 500g / 2 cups dried cannellini beans 15g / 1 tbsp fresh sage, chopped 1 bay leaf( if using dried beans) 50g / 1 / 4 cup sun-dried tomatoes, sliced 45 ml / 3 tbsp olive oil 75g / 5 tbsp Pecorino Romano cheese, enough to cover Salt and pepper to taste
To prepare, soak dried beans in water overnight. Drain and rinse. Add a bay leaf, sage and cover with cold water. Add 5g of salt for every litre of water used to cover the beans. Cook slowly on medium-low heat, without boiling, for about 1 hour until fork tender. Avoid boiling the beans, as this will split the skin and you will end up with soggy beans. Once cooked, strain and toss in a bowl with salt, pepper, sun-dried tomatoes, sage, and olive oil. Place in a baking dish and cover generously with
Continued on page 49
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