The Cuban

Serves 4

Preparation time: 20 minutes
Cooking time: 3½ hours

Ingredients
1 limes, zest and juice
1 orange, zest and juice
1 tsp dried oregano
1 chicken stock pot in 300ml boiling water
2 onions, sliced
2 garlic cloves, chopped
500g pork belly
4 tbsps mayonnaise
1 tbsp hot sauce
2 large tomatoes
2 avocados
4 bake at home rustic rolls or individual ciabatta rolls
Butter
Salt
Pepper

Method
Preheat the oven to 160c.  Put the zest and juice of the lime and orange and the oregano in with the stock and stir.  Into a baking dish that sits the pork fairly snuggly, pour the stock and put the onion slices in the centre of the tray and sit the pork belly on top of the ovens.  Get some foil and seal so there are no gaps and cook for 2½ hours.

Take the pork out of the oven, increase the heat to 220c, cut the foil carefully so that just the top of pork is poking out and the rest of the dish remains covered.  I do this because then the liquid and onions the won’t burn.  Put salt over the top of the crackling and then put back into the oven and cook until the crackling is golden and crispy which will take between 45 mins and 1 hour.

Once you take the pork out of the oven to rest, you can get everything else ready.

Reduce the oven and cook your rolls according to the packet instructions, this is usually 180c for 8-10 minutes.

Meanwhile, mix the mayonnaise with the hot sauce and put a touch of salt in.

Peel your avocado and remove the pip.  Smash the avocado into a bowl with a touch of salt and pepper.

Cut the tomato into ½ cm slices and season with salt and pepper.

Slice your pork into roughly 2cm slices, I find doing this upside down is the easiest as you can slice through the meat and forcefully go through your crackling.

Slice and butter your rolls.  On the bottom put the spicy mayonnaise.  Top with the tomatoes and then the onions.  Put the meat on the top.  Smear the top of your buns with the avocado and put the lid on.

You will need lots of napkins as this is a messy eat.

- Inspired by a recipe in Delicious magazine.