Chinese🥩 Meat

The Best Chinese Crispy Pork Belly Recipe (Air Fry Method)

Name: The Best Chinese Crispy Pork Belly Recipe (Air Fry Method)
Total time: 1 h 15 min
Yield: 2 servings
Cuisine: Chinese
Ingredients: 454 g (1 lb) Skin-on pork belly; 3.8 g Salt (for seasoning mix); 2.1 g Sugar (for seasoning mix); 1.2 g Ground black pepper; 1½ g Garlic powder; 1 g Five-spice powder; 0.7 g Salt (for rubbing pork skin); 27 g Plum sauce (for dipping); 19 g White sugar (for dipping)

⏱ 75 min🍽 Serves 2

An effortless crispy pork belly made with an air fryer that requires no blanching, overnight marinating, hole-poking, or skin dehydration. The air fryer's efficient circulation constantly removes moisture from the skin for perfect crispiness with just 5 minutes of prep.

Adapted from a video by Souped Up Recipes

Watch on YouTube

Ingredients

Skin-on pork belly454 g (1 lb)
Salt (for seasoning mix)3.8 g
Sugar (for seasoning mix)2.1 g
Ground black pepper1.2 g
Garlic powder1½ g
Five-spice powder1 g
Salt (for rubbing pork skin)0.7 g
Plum sauce (for dipping)27 g
White sugar (for dipping)19 g

Steps

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1
Using a sharp knife, score the meat side of the pork belly without cutting through the skin. This allows seasonings to penetrate the meat faster.
2
Combine salt, sugar, ground black pepper, garlic powder, and five-spice powder in a bowl. These measurements are for one pound of meat; scale proportionally for larger quantities.
3
Place the pork belly skin-side down and sprinkle the seasoning mix over the meat. Open the scored cuts and rub the seasonings in thoroughly, including the edges. Avoid touching the skin to prevent the spices from burning during cooking.
4
Flip the pork belly skin-side up and rub it thoroughly with a pinch of salt for a few minutes until the salt draws moisture from the skin. Wipe away the moisture and excess salt with a paper towel.
5
Wrap the pork belly with aluminum foil, leaving the skin side exposed.
6
Set the air fryer to 250°F (121°C) without preheating and cook the pork belly for 1 hour. This low-temperature step cooks the meat through gently.
7
Increase the temperature to 400°F (204°C) and fry for 10–15 minutes until the skin is crispy and golden brown. Since every air fryer differs, monitor the progress closely, pull out the basket to check doneness, and adjust timing as needed.
8
Cut the crispy pork belly into bite-sized pieces and serve with plum sauce or white sugar. The plum sauce's sweet-and-sour flavor balances the richness of the fat, while white sugar is a traditional Cantonese accompaniment that enhances the crispy texture.

The Best Chinese Crispy Pork Belly Recipe (Air Fry Method)

Ingredients

Steps

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