Pork Belly Step 1

Whole Foods has some good pork belly! I got several lbs at a great price delivered within a few hours and it was just as fresh as going to the butcher shop. The slab of meat was huge for what we paid and was thick too. We made pork belly burnt ends out of these and they were out of this world.

I almost did not buy this due to the negative reviews. I had pondered the idea and gone back and forth over whether or not to experiment with pork belly. My inquisitive side won... I’m tired of Uber eats. I love Asian pork belly in Bao buns, but it is $5 a Bao bun at my favorite noodle house. There’s also the pandemic... so the family and I are all getting COVID cooking fatigue. Challenge Accepted!!! I ordered the pork belly through Wholefoods delivery on Amazon. This was one of the most BEAUTIFUL peices of pork that I have ever purchased. The fat and meat were nicely layered. The color and thickness of the pork belly were an amazing value for the money. I purchased 3.5 pounds for my family of four. I wish I purchased more. The husband said it was one of the best meals that he’s ever eaten in his life. I take that to heart as we have travelled quite a bit as a military family. I scored the bottom not the top to help the marinade soak into the meat better. I’ve had some awful pork belly in my life... tough, chewy, and too tangy. I marinated the pork belly in a vacuum sealed bag overnight. I used a mixture of fresh ginger, garlic, seasame seed oil, soy sauce, and Korean red chili paste. I found the recipe on FOOD NETWORK. The next day I roasted the pork belly in the oven low and slow for 3.5 hours at 325. I allowed the porkbelly to cool for one hour before slicing and pan searing. The results were beyond outstanding. The level of decadence is something that I did not know I could create as a home cook. I served it with Jasmine rice and a bag of steamed veggies. I made ginger pickles with carrots and celery. The entire meal was the stuff of a James Beard Awarded restaurant. I am completely astounded by the quality of the pork and the complexity of the flavor profile. I am forever changed...lol!!! If you are on the fence order this... talk to your delivery person, and tell them exactly what you want. I did!! And, it made all the difference! Happy Shopping, and safe health to everyone during this quarantine!!!

These pork belly cuts are not bad, just be aware that these look to be fresh cut and some of them can have a very high fat content, I had a piece that consisted of 50% fat. It's not bad if you want to use pork fat to render for other dishes. Otherwise this is was fine for the dish that I wanted to make, I would buy again.

Best pork was from wholefoods ! Most of store sold pork with wired smell , but Whole Foods is still the best

Fresh, tasty, hard to crisp up

More expensive than the Asian stores . The cut wasn’t what I pictured . This is literally 40% fat .

Their pork belly is really tasty. Keep in mind if you buy 3 lbs of it, it’s not coming sliced. Luckily we have an electric knife that made the job easy.

Some was in pieces and was not all pork belly. Maybe pork shoulder.