5 Spice Roast Pork with Crunchy Crackling
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Prep: 15 mins
Cook: 2 hrs 30 mins + 30 mins resting
5 spice is a key ingredient in Chinese cooking, and we’ve added its warming, aromatic magic to a mix of black pepper and ginger to create a fiery, flavoursome rub for our succulent organic pork shoulder.
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533 kcal
(per portion)
Ingredients you'll need
  • 1.8 kg pork shoulder, boned & rolled
  • 15 black peppercorns
  • 3 tsp China 5 spice
  • 1½ tbsp cider vinegar
  • A thumb of ginger
From your kitchen
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • Sea salt
Step by step this way
  • 1.

    Heat your oven to 240°C/Fan 220°C/Gas 9. Unwrap the pork and pat it dry with kitchen paper. Set it in a roasting tin, skin side up, and set aside for up to 1 hr to get it up to room temperature.

  • 2.

    Tip the black peppercorns into a pestle and mortar and grind them as finely as you can. No pestle and mortar? Use a small bowl and a jam jar or the end of the rolling pin to roughly crush them.

  • 3.

    Add 2 tsp China 5 spice and 1 tbsp cider vinegar to the peppercorns. Peel and grate in the ginger. Add 2 tbsp olive oil, a good pinch of salt and stir to make a paste. Massage the paste all over the pork, making sure to rub it into the slits on the skin and in any gaps at the ends of the rolled pork.

  • 4.

    Slide the pork into the oven and roast for 30 mins. Baste the skin halfway through.

  • 5.

    Remove the pork from the oven and baste the skin well. Lower the oven temperature to 160°C/ Fan 140°C/Gas 3. Return the pork to the oven and gently roast for 2 hrs.

  • 6.

    Check the pork is cooked by piercing it with a metal skewer. The juices should run clear. If not, pop it back in the oven till they do.

  • 7.

    Transfer the pork to a plate or board to rest, covered loosely with foil, for at least 30 mins before carving. Serve in thick slices with the crackling.

  • 8.

  • Tip

    On the side
    Garlicky greens are great with this Chinese-inspired roast pork. Shred greens, such as kale, cavolo nero, cabbage or pak choi. Warm a large frying pan or wok and add a splash of oil. Add 3-4 chopped garlic cloves and fry for 30 secs. Then add the greens and stir fry them to just wilt them. Pour in a little chicken stock and add a splash of tamari. Bubble for a few mins till tender.

  • Tip

    Next week...
    Give roast chicken a festive twist with our recipe for Roast Chicken with a Honey & Clementine Glaze. The sticky mix of clementines, honey and tamari make a fruity marinade for our organic chooks.