This recipe was made in collaboration with Compliments and I used Compliments Salt and Cracked Black Pepper Pork Belly for this recipe. Typically Haitian pork griot, a popular dish made of marinated, spicy citrus pork shoulder that is typically deep-fried and served with spicy pickled veg called pikliz. Pork belly worked really well here. I fried both my griot and banan peze though you may choose to broil your pork after braising. Broiling is a good option if you are not very comfortable with deep frying, especially deep frying fatty cuts of meat like pork belly. This recipe is so flavourful. It is absolutely delicious and reducing the pork marinade at the end to top the griot is a phenomenal finishing touch that makes the pork that much better. The pork is best served with banan peze (fried green plantain), rice and a side of pikliz mentioned earlier. Try this if you are feeling like testing your hand at a Haitian recipe. Perhaps you can try both cooking methods and conduct your own taste test.
Hatian Pork Griot Banan Peze and Pikliz
Ingredients
Griot
- 2 packs Compliment’s Salt and Cracked Black Pepper Pork Belly
- 1 lime juiced
- 1 orange juiced
- 2 cups water
Epis
- 1 shallot roughly chopped
- 5 scallions roughly chopped
- 1 green bell pepper roughly chopped
- 3 cloves garlic smashed
- 2 limes juiced
- 2 tablespoons Compliment’s white vinegar
- 5 sprigs fresh thyme
- 1/2 bunch fresh parsley roughly chopped
- 1 Scotch bonnet pepper sliced
- Salt and black pepper to taste if necessary
Pikliz
- 1 1/2 cups thinly sliced cabbage from about 1/8 large cabbage
- 1/4 cup julienned or grated carrots from about 1 medium carrot
- 1/4 cup thinly sliced onions
- 3 Scotch bonnet peppers stemmed quartered
- 3 sprigs thyme
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- ¾-1 cup or more distilled white vinegar
- 1 1/2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
- ½ cup water
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- Black pepper to taste
Banan Peze
- 3 green plantains
- 1 –2 cups vegetable oil for frying
- Sea salt to taste
- Additional Topping optional
- 1 bunch of parsley finely chopped
- 2-3 tablespoon olive oil
- Juice from ½ lime
- Salt to taste
- Pepper to taste
Instructions
Epis
- Add all your ingredients into a food processor and blend until smooth.
- Save ½-¾ of your epis for your pork. The rest can be set aside in the fridge for up to 3 days or frozen to marinate other meats or as seasoning in a curry.
Griot
- Cut your Compliments pork belly into big cubes, keeping in mind that during braising, it will reduce in size significantly as fat renders. Place cubed pork into a large bowl.
- Start with marinating your pork. Add your epis to the cubed pork, add your orange juice, lime juice and mix thoroughly. Cover the bowl and place in the refrigerator to marinate for at least 3 hours or overnight. I do not add extra salt because the Compliments pork belly comes seasoned but you may need to adjust seasoning after braising.
- Place your Dutch oven with the marinated pork on the stove. Add 2 cups of water and bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer and simmer for 1 hour. Checking to make sure the liquid does not get too low. Remember there will be rendered fat on top of the pork so make sure you take this into account when checking for water level.
- When ready, do not discard the liquid. Pick out all the pieces of pork and place on a tray lined with paper towel or parchment paper to dry a bit. Strain the liquid and reduce for about 10 minutes until it is still runny but a lot thicker.
- Deep Frying Method (Optional): If you choose to deep fry, you can heat a deep pot of oil to about 350°F and you can add the pork in batches and fry until it is a deep golden brown colour, about 5 minutes. Take the pork out and let oil drain on a paper towel until ready to serve.
- Broiling Method: I opted to broil my pork. On a metal baking tray (remove parchment if using), add your pork, drizzle 1 tablespoon of oil if necessary and broil on high for about 7 minutes, watching carefully so it does not burn and turn once at about the 3 minute mark, until pork is nice and browned with some crispy bits.
- Top with reserved braising liquid.
- Serve with banane peze and the pikliz.
Pikliz
- Pack cabbage, carrots, shallots, peppers, thyme, cloves, black peppercorn and salt into a 1 1/2-quart resealable jar.
- In a glass jar, add sugar, vinegar and lime juice, seal jar, and shake until ingredients are distributed and salt is dissolved.
- Add more vinegar if needed to just cover vegetables. Chill, shaking gently twice daily, at least 3 days before serving.
Banan Peze
- Peel the plantains by making a vertical cut through the skin and peeling it back with your hands or the edge of a spoon.
- Cut the plantains into 1-inch thick pieces. Heat a layer of oil in a heavy-bottomed pan.
- Fry the plantains in batches. When the plantains are starting to turn light golden brown, remove from the oil and transfer to a plate lined with paper towels. Smash each piece with the back of a wooden spoon — this gives you a flatter shape with rougher edges. Return to the frying pan and fry for an additional 4-5 minutes or until golden brown and crispy. Transfer back to a paper towel lined plate to drain excess oil.
- Sprinkle with salt and serve with pork griot
