Who doesn’t love the aroma of roast pork? This delicious dish is a Sunday night favourite and makes fantastic leftovers for work the next day.

Perhaps one of the best part of a good roast pork is the crackling. The key to a good pork crackling is to make sure that your oven is very hot and has reached the right temperature first before you put the pork in. I have also had success by patting the pork skin dry with a paper towel first, before adding oil and salt.

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Ingredients

1 (about 1.5kg) boned rolled loin or leg pork
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 brown onion, finely chopped
4 slices pancetta (or bacon), finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1/2 cup macadamias, coarsely chopped
1/4 cup toasted pine nuts
1 cup  almond meal
2 tablespoons finely shredded sage
1 egg, lightly whisked
1 teaspoon fennel seeds
1 teaspoon sea salt flakes
Steamed asparagus, carrots and brocoli to serve

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Method

Take your pork out of the fridge and allow to come to room temperature while the oven heats.

Pre-heat oven to 230°C.

Heat half the oil in a large frying pan over medium heat.

Add the onion, pancetta and garlic and cook, stirring, for 5 minutes or until onion softens.

Add macadamias and cook, stirring, for 3-4 minutes or until nuts are lightly golden.

Remove from heat and set aside to cool slightly.

Once it has cooled, transfer to a medium bowl. Add the pine nuts, almond meal, sage and egg and stir to combine. Season with salt and pepper.

Place the pork, rind-side up, on a clean surface. Pat dry with paper towel. If the butcher hasn’t already scored the rind for you, use your sharpest knife to score the rind diagonally about 2 cm apart.

Then turn the pork over and use a sharp knife to make a 5cm-deep cut under the eye of the meat to make a cavity for the stuffing.

Place the stuffing across the centre of the pork. Roll pork to enclose the filling. Secure with kitchen string.

Place in a roasting pan. Drizzle with remaining oil and sprinkle with fennel seeds and salt, making sure you massage it well into the skin.

Roast in oven for 30 minutes. Reduce heat to 180°C and roast for a further 45 minutes or until pork is tender and the juices run clear.

Remove from heat and cover with foil. Set aside for 15-20 minutes to rest.

Once rested remove cracking and using scissors cut into strips to serve with the meat

Cut pork into slices. Place on serving plates, lightly drizzle over pan juices.

Serve with steamed asparagus, broccoli and carrot

Bon Appetite!