August 22, 2015

The winter solstice has passed, meaning the Earth has switched its orbit and we’ve survived the shortest day and longest night of the year. In the farming industries this is the time when plants enter their photoperiod response, hiding beneath the soil and storing energy to sprout come spring.

For humans this also marks the time for hibernating, inviting friends over and getting your feast on, recouping energy for all the ‘Bikini Body Challenges’ that start in September.

The truth is we barely need an excuse to hunker down when the weather turns but last week took the opportunity to celebrate the launch Dom’s sister’s business, The Dermal Diary (follow the link to learn more but it’s essentially the most straight talking beauty blog in the game, she also has a popular therapy studio as well – Isabella you can thank us later).

It’s way too cold for champagne, which is where Penfolds fits in. We celebrated our winter feast with a bottle of Penfolds 2012 Bin 389 Cabernet Shiraz and a Penfolds 2013 Bin 128 Coonawarra Shiraz.

Much like a supermodel girlfriend, you can pretty much bring a bottle from The Penfolds Collection to the table anywhere and be guaranteed to impress.

Add to the fact that they’re full-bodied but flexible enough to pair with a 3-hour pork roast makes them worthy enough of celebration.

Anyway, with no further adieu, we give you…

The Absolute No Fuss Way To Make The Most Crowd Pleasing Pork Belly You’ve Ever Tasted

Step 1:

Pre-heat the oven to 250 degrees (celcius).

Step 2:

Score and salt the fleshy skin and leave for a good hour. Return to the meat and dab off any excess moisture. You can repeat this process twice if you like.

Step 3:

Salt the skin again and place onto a rack into a heavy bottom roasting tray. Place this into the oven for 30 – 45 minutes or until you see the skin become golden and crunchy.

Step 4:

Turn the oven down to 150 degrees (celcius) and pour a cup into the drip tray of the oven or into a separate pan on the second row of the oven. Replenish this as needed.

You can also occasionally baste the pork with the fat that drips off.

Step 5:

Continue leave to cook for another 2 hours (roughly, depending on the size of your meat) or as long as you like. It’s perfect and ready to go when the fat beneath the skin has loosened away nicely (you’ll know when this happens).

Step 6:

Enjoy with friends and a couple of bottles of Penfolds 2012 BIN 389 Cabernet Shiraz and the Penfolds 2013 BIN 128 Coonawarra Shiraz.