Medium
6
By Eleanor Ford
Published 2019
The crowning glory of Balinese cuisine is babi guling, a perfectly crackled, spice-scented, spit-roasted suckling pig. The whole pig is stuffed with a turmeric-gold paste known as basa gede or ‘big spice mix’. Such a feast is usually saved for big events: weddings, funerals and tooth filing ceremonies are all cause to pig out. Here is my scaled-down version for the home cook, so there is no need to wait for a celebration.
Roughly chop the ingredients for the spice paste and whizz together in a food processor. Set a quarter aside in the fridge for the sauce.
Score the skin of the pork belly with a sharp knife for crisp crackling. Flip over and prick the meat with a sharp knife. Thickly spread over the spice paste, rubbing it into the meat. Roll the pork into a joint surrounded by skin and use butcher’s string to tie tightly at regular intervals. Cover loosely with foil and marinate in the fridge for a couple of hours or overnight.
When ready to cook,
Meanwhile make the sauce by heating the oil in a pan. Add the reserved spice paste and fry for 5 minutes or until fragrant. Stir in the coconut milk and any juices from the roast pork. Simmer for 5 minutes and adjust the seasoning.
Serve the pork in thick slices with the sauce.
© 2019 All rights reserved. Published by Murdoch Books.