Crisp Fried Pork with Parsley Sauce

This is almost - but not quite - the national dish of Denmark. Mr. Ferdzy and I joke that everything is better with bacon, unless it's better with whipped cream, with the exception being a few dishes - usually Danish - better with both.

Whipped cream is an exaggeration, but this is pork belly (i.e. uncured bacon) and it is traditionally served with a cream sauce with parsley in it. I could not quite face the idea and while I still made a parsley sauce, I toned it down and left out any cream. You could put in a bit if you like.

It seems to get translated as fried, but in fact the method of cooking is roasting, although this is such a fatty cut of pork that the difference in results is trivial. The pork should be sliced thicker than bacon, anywhere up to about an inch thick, although I would think half that thickness would be ideal. Since the outside should get nice and crunchy in the roasting, I don't think the time for cooking will change much, but do start checking it about 10 minutes earlier if yours is thin, just in case I'm wrong. 

2 to 4 servings
45 minutes - 20 minutes prep time

Cook the Pork: 
500 grams to 1 kilo (1 or 2 pounds) sliced pork belly
salt & freshly ground black pepper
sweet paprika

Preheat the oven to 400°F. Put a rack on a good deep roasting pan. Pat the pork dry, and season on all sides with salt, pepper, and paprika. Lay the slices in a single layer, spaced a bit, on the rack.

Roast for 25 to 30 minutes on the top rack of the oven. Turn the pieces over (with tongs) and return to the top rack. Roast for a further 10 to 15 minutes until the meat looks crisp and browned. Remove it to a serving plate and serve with the parsley sauce.

Make the Parsley Sauce:
1 tablespoon pork fat
1 tablespoon barley or other flour
3/4 cup chicken OR ham stock
1/2 cup finely chopped parsley
2 teaspoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons sour cream OPTIONAL

When you turn the pork, lift out 1 tablespoon of the fat to a small saucepan. Once the pork is back in the oven, stir the flour into the fat and heat until bubbly all through, stirring a bit. Slowly mix in the stock to form a smooth sauce. Let simmer gently for a few minutes until thickened.

Just before the meat is ready to be served, bring up the heat again and add the parsley, stirring it in until it is just wilted. Add the lemon juice and sour cream, if using, and stir them in. Remove from the heat and put in a gravy boat or drizzle over the pork. Serve at once.




Last year at this time I made Roasted Rutabaga Fries. Boiled potatoes are more traditionally served with this, but Rutabaga Fries cook at the same temperature as the pork and would be a good choice!

Posted in: Ontario Food