Bunched carrots
These lovely carrots were in Friday’s Organic veg box.
As they arrive complete with their stems, they are a reminder that they were freshly pulled from the ground.
They can be a little soft, because they are so fresh and have not been stored for long like winter carrots, so we like to soak them in very cold water so they become crisp and crunchy. It makes them easier to slice too.
We only needed five of these to add to the garden peas which we had already in the fridge.
As the weather had become cloudy, we decided against a barbeque outdoor.
Since most of the food had been bought for a planned barbeque, we had light summer veg, such as garden peas and asparagus, so we used these as part of Sunday’s roast .
The Pork Belly which would have been for the barbeque, was scored and then salted (to take the moisture out) to make the outer layer of fat crisp up in the oven.
It takes a good 2-3 hours for the Pork Belly to cook slowly on a low heat, (about 160 degrees) so that the fat within the meat can release it’s deliciousness.
In the past, we’ve usually roasted pork above a bed of root veg, so that as the juices run, they combine with the veg to make the gravy. A side effect of this is that the roasting pan at the end of the meal is easier to clean.
Roast belly of pork
Belly of pork is thinner and this meant that resting it on veg might make the whole thing soft. Instead, we filled the bottom of the pan with water and put the pork above on a rack, so that the meat could roast with a bath of steaming water to keep the meat tender.
It worked out quite well as the skin became crispy and the meat was soft and buttery.
To compliment the pork, a sauce was made, with fresh apricots, that had been peeled and the stone removed, they were cooked with some sugar and honey and then strained to take away any pulp to make a smooth sauce. (We didn’t have any cooking apples to hand)
Along with this, was some Venus black rice that was a gift. We had never tried this variety of rice, and when cooked the rice turned a deep purple and had a nutty aroma.
Even though the weather was overcast today, we still enjoyed the time to just cook and enjoy lunch together.
The smell of the cooking and food usually brings the cats in from the garden, and today was no different. They sit on the kitchen window sill inspecting the meat, waiting for one of us to relent and feed them.
