Meat

Belly

Pork belly is the layered side of the pig—streaks of meat and fat that become bacon when cured and smoked, pancetta when cured and rolled, and crispy roast belly when scored and rendered in the oven. The skin (rind) can blister into crackling if dried and blasted with heat; the meat beneath stays moist from the fat seams. Thickness and fat ratio vary by breed; Iberian and Mangalitsa bellies are especially rich. It is prized for that dual texture: crunchy skin or crisp edges against soft, unctuous meat. Salt early, score the rind carefully without cutting deep into meat, start hot or finish hot for crackling, and rest before slicing. For bacon, cure with salt, sugar, and nitrites/nitrate per recipe; smoke if desired. Too lean a belly dries; too wet a rind will not crackle.