I love bacon.
I adore bacon.
But that’s’ where my interest in pork begins and ends.

The rest of my family have another love in addition to bacon.
Pork Crackling!

Now when you’re a family of 5, negotiations are just a part of life.
I get to stuff the pork loin with Swiss chard and raisins, and they get crackling!
Everyone’s a winner!

I followed Dorie Greenspan’s recipe, from her book ‘Around My French Table’, right up to the last step.
But instead of patting crushed peppercorns and coriander over the pork roast, I substituted Donna Hay’s steps to achieving the perfect crackling! (My husband just read this and wanted me to stress how incredible the crackling was).

*As soon as you get your pork home, remove the wrapping and place the pork on a plate in the fridge until ready to prepare. This makes the skin dry out, which helps create a crunchy surface.
* To make the crackling really crispy, make sure the oven is very hot – preheat for about 20 minutes at 220 celsius.
* Rub salt and oil into the scored pork after tying. Table salt spreads further than sea salt and helps give the crackling its crunch.

I then cooked the pork for 20 minutes at 220 celsius, then reduced it to 200 degrees celsius and cooked it for another 50-55 minutes.

I peeled potatoes and pumpkin, tossed them in a little oil, salt and pepper and added to the baking tray with the pork when I reduced the temperature to 200 degrees celsius.

We all loved this dish.
It was so delicious!
The stuffing flavoured the meat and the vegetables, really lifting and enhancing the flavours.

The cracking was truly out of this world!
I usually can’t get past the fact that I am eating fat.
But oh my goodness!!!
It was divine!

I am really looking forward to the leftovers…

And I cannot wait to see what the rest of the French Fridays with Dorie group came up with!