Capsaicin Free Crispy Pork Belly (Siu Yuk)
Few dishes deliver the kind of primal satisfaction that comes from biting through a shatteringly crisp skin into rich, tender pork belly underneath. This Cantonese classic is all about technique — the deep puncturing of the skin, the overnight salt crust, and the two-stage roast that first cooks the meat through before blasting the surface into golden, blistered crackling. The marinade of garlic-infused oil, tamari, five-spice, white pepper, and sugar builds a savory, aromatic depth on the meat side while the skin stays completely dry and primed for that signature crunch. For anyone avoiding capsaicin, this recipe is a natural fit — there's no chili, no hot sauce, and no spice blends with hidden pepper heat anywhere in the ingredient list, just warm, fragrant spices that deliver big flavor without any burn. The baking soda and rice wine vinegar brush is a quiet little trick that helps the skin bubble and blister in the oven rather than turning leathery. Sliced into pieces with a sharp cleaver and served with a splash of tamari for dipping, this is the kind of showstopper that makes a table go quiet in the best possible way. Plan ahead for the overnight dry-brine and you'll be rewarded with crackling that genuinely crackles.
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Learn more →Ingredients
6 servings
For the pork
- 2 ½ lb skin-on pork belly, in one slab
For the marinade
- 1 tbsp garlic-infused oil
- 1 tbsp tamari
- 1 tsp five-spice powder
- 1 tsp ground white pepper
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1 tsp fine salt
For the skin
- 1 tbsp rice wine vinegar
- 3 tbsp coarse sea salt
- 1 tsp baking soda
For serving
- 3 stalks scallion, green tops only, thinly sliced (optional)
- 1 tbsp tamari, for dipping (optional)
Instructions
- 1
Pat the pork belly completely dry with paper towels. Using a sharp skewer, fork, or the tip of a paring knife, poke the skin all over — aim for at least 50–60 punctures across the entire surface, going no deeper than the fat layer beneath the skin. This is the most important step for achieving a bubbly, crackling crust.
- 2
Flip the pork belly skin-side down. In a small bowl, stir together the garlic-infused oil, tamari, five-spice powder, white pepper, sugar, and fine salt until combined. Rub this marinade evenly over the meat and fat sides only — keep it off the skin entirely.
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