Balamban Liempo

Balamban Liempo. Our Balamban Liempo Recipe is my first entry for the 2011 Celebration Recipes series. Traditionally Overseas Pinoy Cooking offers suggested dishes for your coming Christmas celebration. The series aims to help you choice what dish would you want to have these coming Holiday Seasons. This year is the 4th year now of the celebration recipes series, each year I have tried to post new recipes so that you can always browse the Celebration Recipes archives of previous years should you are looking for a traditional Christmas Recipes that have been previously published. Now here is my first entry for this year's Celebration Recipes series.

Balamban Liempo as the name connote originated in Balamban one of the town located along the western coast of Cebu. Several entrepreneurs have brought the Balamban Liempo outside of Balamban and has become one of the must eat food when you are in Cebu City.

Today I would like to share my version of this increasingly popular lechon liempo. To make the dish of course I have tried to re-create the green staffing that made this roast pork belly popular. For the stuffing ingredients of my version I used chopped large spring onions, chopped chives, chopped lemongrass, some chili flakes, chopped garlic, salt and pepper to taste. Cooking is basically similar to my other oven roasted pork belly Lechon sa Oven. If you own an electric oven with top grill that would be perfect. Now do not worry if you do not have one you can still roast your Balamban Liempo using a regular gas or electric oven all you have to do is be mindful of your roasting time and temperatures, you’d probably have adjust your oven temperatures and turn the roasting pork more often.

The pork belly has to be roasted in 2 procedures. During the first half of roasting the pork belly is roasted while it is in the roasting pan I used glass. This will allow the juices together with the aromatics cook the meat, remember you have to use top and bottom grill of the oven. Halfway the pork belly is removed from the pan and let grill on the middle of the oven. You can also use you’re your turbo broiler if you have one, again just be mindful of your temperatures and timings.Now I wish a have an oven with rotisserie then we would not have to do the above complicated roasting method. Okey here is the recipe of my Roast Pork Belly Balamban Liempo Style.

Ingredients:

1/2 kilo pork belly
garlic powder
salt and pepper

For the filling

1 small bundle large spring onions, chopped
1 stalk lemon grass, chopped
1 small bundle chives, chopped
3-4 cloves garlic, chopped
black pepper powder
chili flakes
salt

For the baste

3 tablespoon oil
1 tablespoon soy sauce.

Cooking procedure:

Make an incision in the middle of the pork belly to form a pocket for the fillings. Rub the pork belly with garlic powder, salt and pepper, let stand in the refrigerator and marinate for a least 1 hour or more. Mix and blend all the filling ingredients, and put it inside the belly pocket, keep aside. Preheat oven to 300°F to 350°F using the top and bottom heating element. In a roasting pan with the same size with the pork belly place the pork belly with the skin on top. Drizzle the pork belly skin with soy sauce and rub to evenly coat.

Place the roasting pan in the pre-heated oven and roast for 1 to 1 1/2hours. Occasionally brush the skin with the oil and soy sauce baste mixture. Adjust, lower the temperature if the skin is drying or cooking to fast. Now remove the pork belly from the baking pan and place in the middle of the oven in a rack, continue to roast for another 20 to 30 minutes. Increase the oven temperature to 400°F to 450°F during the last 10 to 15 minutes of cooking or until reddish in color and the skin should be crisp at this stage. Remove from oven and cover the roasting pan with aluminium foil and let rest for 10 to 15 minutes. Cut into serving pieces and serve with your choice pinakurat vinegar dipping sauce.

See other Pork Lechon recipes;

Roast Pork Belly, Pork Belly Lechon sa Oven
Pinoy Rack of Pork, Lechon Kawali Style 
Lechon sa Oven Inasal Style 
Roast Pork Leg, Pinoy Lechon Style 
Lechon sa Oven 
Lechon Macau 
Vigan Bagnet 
Lechon Kawali

See other related recipe:

Roast Pork Tocino Style
Lechon Manok
Max's Style Fried Chicken
Savory Chicken, Roast Chicken
Chicken Relleno
Crispy Pata
Lechon Manok, Turbo Broiled Chicken