Ingredients:

1 pound Pork Belly, skin on

1 teaspoon Black Peppercorn

1/2 teaspoon Fennel Seed

1/2 each Cinnamon stick

2 each Clove Whole

4 each Allspice Whole

2 each Garlic clove

1 1/2 Tablespoons Sea Salt

2 teaspoons Brown Sugar

1 sprig sage

1 Apple, quartered

1 Lemon

1 Onion and Fennel Bulb chopped in large pieces

1 large bottle of hard cider

Instructions :

Preheat oven to 450 F
Toast spices on a sheet tray in the oven for a couple minutes until fragrant
Put in a grinder or mortar with garlic clove and sage and blend/smash until fine, add to the sugar and half the salt
Pat belly dry and rub with half of lemon and sprinkle spice mix on the meat none on the skin
Sprinkle the skin with salt. Place in roasting pan that fits the belly with a little room on each side
Add Onion and Fennel around sides
Roast for 1 hour or until skin starts crisping up
Pour in bottle of hard cider over veg avoiding the pork skin
Cider should come up close to the top of the Belly
Reduce heat to 375 F and roast another hour
Reduce heat again to 250 F and cook until you can pull the belly meat apart. approx. another hour
Rub salt off the skin
Let slightly cook on a cutting board
Put roasting veggies in a blender and slowly puree smooth adding roasting juices to get desired consistency
On a platter spread roasting veggies on a platter and slice pork belly with serrated knife
Place on puree and drizzle sauce around