A simple rustic French dish that utilises the most basic flavours of France. Pork belly was once known as a cheap cut of meat and was quite often used in peasant dishes such as this one.
Petit salé means lightly salted (or cured). The pork will need to be prepared up to 8 hours prior to cooking (minimum of 4).
Serves 4 to 6
1 kg Pork Belly, whole and skin on
Cooking salt
4 Stalks celery, sliced diagonally into 5 cm pieces
4 Carrots, peeled and sliced diagonally into 2cm pieces
6 Eschalots, or small onions, peeled and left whole
4 Cloves of garlic, peeled and slightly crushed
200g Smoked sausage (I use a locally made Wurst sausage), sliced diagonally into 2cm pieces
1 bag (375g) Puy lentils, in Australia: McKenzie’s “French Style Lentils”.
1 large fresh Bouquet Garni of bay leaves, flat leaf parsley and thyme
1 small bunch of flat leaf parsley, roughly chopped
20g Butter
Completely coat the pork with salt. Place in a non-metallic dish and put in the fridge for 4 to 8 hours.
After the cure time, remove the pork from the dish and rinse under a tap of fresh cold water.
Put the pork, skin side down, in baking dish, or pan that can be placed on the stovetop – the pork should just fit neatly in the pot. You don’t want a pot too big or the stew will be watery
Cover with boiling water, so that the pork is just covered. Bring to the boil removing any scum that rises to the surface. Turn down the heat to a simmer, cover the pot and cook for around 45 minutes.
Turn the pork over and pour in the bag of lentils around the pork. Add the bouquet garni and simmer for a further 15 minutes without the lid.
Add the vegetables and sausage and simmer for 20 minutes (with the lid off).
Remove the pork. Add the chopped parsley and butter to the pot and stir through.
To serve ladle the lentil stew into large soup bowls. Slice the pork into generous long slabs and place on top of the stew. You can also garnish with more chopped parsley.
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