Chicharrones

By Farideh Sadeghin

Updated May 24, 2024

Total Time: 2¾ hours
Prep Time: 15 minutes, plus at least 1 hour curing
Cook Time: 1 hour and 30 minutes
Rating: 4(21)
Notes: Read community notes

A snack prized for their crunch and salt factor, chicharrones commonly involve fried pork skin. You’ll find versions across Spain and Latin America where they might be crisped by methods that include deep-frying, baking or boiling. This recipe uses long, 1-inch-wide pork belly strips that include the skin, fat and belly. In order to get them as crisp as possible, they’re rubbed with baking soda before cooking. Next, they’re rinsed and submerged in water in a nonstick skillet. They’ll simmer and tenderize as the water evaporates, then eventually they sizzle in their own rendered fat. (A splatter screen will help protect you from the pork belly skin as it crackles and crisps in the pan, and long sleeves will help prevent any hot oil burns.) Serve these meaty, crunchy chicharrones on their own, with lime wedges, or with one-pot rice and beans.

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Ingredients

Yield:4 servings

2pounds boneless, skin-on pork belly
2teaspoons baking soda
Salt
Lime wedges, for serving (optional)

Ingredient Substitution Guide

Preparation

Step 1
Place the pork belly, skin-side down, on a clean work surface. Cut into 1-inch wide strips across the width of the meat, perpendicular to the grain. With the skin-side still facing down, make crosswise cuts every 1½ inches into each piece along the entire length, slicing about ¾ of the way into the belly, being careful not to cut through the skin. (Each strip will look similar to one side of a zipper.)
Step 2
Set the pork belly strips skin-side up on a sheet pan fitted with a rack. Rub the pork belly skin with the baking soda and refrigerate, uncovered, for at least 1 hour and up to 8 hours.
Step 3
Rinse the baking soda off of the pork, then place the strips in a large (12-inch) nonstick skillet. Cover with 2 to 4 cups of room temperature water and bring to a boil. (It’s OK if the pork belly isn’t completely submerged; simply turn using tongs halfway through.) Decrease the heat to maintain a simmer, and cook until the liquid has completely evaporated, about 1 hour and 15 minutes.
Step 4
When the liquid has evaporated, cover the pot with a splatter guard. Continue cooking the pork in its fat, carefully turning the strips as needed, until golden and crisp, 20 to 25 minutes. Carefully transfer to a paper towel-lined plate and season with salt. Cool slightly, then serve as is or with lime wedges, as desired.

Ratings

4 out of 5

21 user ratings

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John Duncan2 weeks ago

No salt was used in the instructions

Jack Craine3 weeks ago

What is the purpose of the baking soda?

Maggie T.3 weeks ago

It makes the skin crisper

rick4 weeks ago

Why not just bake and be done with it? Same result, less work no?

Shannon4 weeks ago

What are the zipper cuts for?

Suzanne F4 weeks ago

To expose more of the fat, so more renders out. And to make it easier to cut into individual bites once the chicharron are fully cooked.

Mark Weiss4 weeks ago

My Mexican neighbors made their chicarones in a massive stainless bowl. They used the cauldron of rendered fat to make carnitas adding orange juice. I ate as much as I could.

Pat1 month ago

Non-stick skillet to boil water and then render fat????

David G4 weeks ago

Yeah, that's just silly. I suppose cleanup might be a tiny bit easier, but stainless steel would be better. Just avoid boiling in cast iron or mild steel unless you want to ruin the seasoned surface.

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