Chicharron – A Beautiful Mess

If you love crispy bacon or pork rinds, I highly recommend you try this chicharrón recipe! Chicharrones are an appetizer or snack made of crispy pork belly. Much like thick cut bacon, you can fry these on the stove top or bake in the oven. I think the oven method is much easier and results in this crunchy, salty and flavor-packed dish! You can enjoy chicharrones all on their own with a little fresh lime juice, or use in other recipes like chopped up over pasta, salad, rice dishes or even in ramen.

Chicharrón means “crackling” in Spanish. This is a popular dish in Spain and Latin America. To make homemade chicharrones, you only need three ingredients and an oven, so this popular finger food can easily be made by any home cook!

Related: Looking for more appetizers? Here are 30+ Finger Foods to try. And next learn to cook bacon.

Ingredients

• Pork belly
• Baking soda
• Limes
• Seasoning – salt and pepper or a mix like Pappy’s Seasoning, which you see in my photo below

Pork belly is also sometimes called or labeled “side meat” and you could also use pork skin.

The lime juice and baking soda help with better browning of the meat because it creates an alkaline environment. Science!

How to make Chicharrones

Cut the pork belly into roughly 1/2-inch (1.3 cm) strips. Try to keep them relatively uniform, but it’s OK if they aren’t all exactly the same thickness. Then cut notches along the bottom, the opposite of the skin/fat side.

Season the pork belly pieces with salt and pepper or whatever seasoning you are using on both sides.

Whisk or stir together the baking soda and lime juice in a small bowl. This will bubble and fizz (a normal chemical reaction). Brush the mixture on each of the pieces, front and back.

Place on a baking sheet or pan lined with aluminum foil, making sure the baking sheet has a lip or raised edge as quite a bit of fat/grease will cook off during the baking (oven frying). These are essentially going to fry in the oven. Bake at 300°F (149°C) for 90 minutes, flipping halfway through the baking time. I use tongs to flip these easily.

Move to a cooling rack to let any excess grease drip off. Serve warm with fresh lime wedges.

Tips and Notes

• Alternatively to the notches/chain style of cutting, you could cut into strips and then score the skin on top. The goal here is to give the heat and hot oil spaces to move around as these cook, creating lots of crispy edges.
• If you feel the chicharrón is not crispy enough by the end of baking, broil for 1-2 minutes on each side as needed.
• Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 days. I feel chicharrones are best the day they are made, but we will use the leftovers much like you would leftover bacon: chopped up in salads, soups or other dishes. I’m not above chopping it up to put in our dog’s food too—no need to waste any leftovers. 🙂

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