Pan con chicharrón
Pan con chicharrón is one of the most iconic sandwiches of my home country. This is the Peruvian version of pork roll commonly eaten for breakfast or lonche (afternoon tea).
Servings 6
Ingredients
- 1 kg pork belly a little more if on the bone
- 5 cups of water
- grams salt
- 1/4 tsp cumin
- 1 garlic clove peeled and smashed
- freshly ground black pepper
- 2 medium sweet potatoes
- 6 ciabatta or other crusty bread rolls
To serve
- salsa criolla
- fresh chilli sliced (optional)
- fresh coriander leaves
- side salad
Instructions
- Cut the pork belly in large chunks.
- Make a brine with the water, salt, cumin, garlic and pepper. Stir well until the salt is fully dissolved.
- Place pork and brine in a large ziplock bag or in a bowl covered with cling wrap. Refrigerate for a few hours or overnight.
- When ready to cook, rinse pork and place in a heavy-bottomed pot (cast iron is ideal). Cover with cold water and bring to a boil. Simmer semi-covered until the water has evaporated, this should take 1½ to 2 hours.
- While the pork cooks, preheat oven to 200°C (180°C fan-forced).
- Peel and slice sweet potato in rounds. Place on a baking sheet lined with wax paper and bake until golden brown.
- Once the pork liquid has evaporated, bring the heat up to medium and let pork brown in its own fat. Using tongs, turn pieces to brown on all sides. Be careful with fat splattering.
- Make sandwiches by placing sweet potato and chicharrón on bread rolls, topped with salsa criolla, chilli and coriander leaves. Make sure to have some salad on the side!