Guest Post Spotlight: Pork Belly Rolls with Mint Dressing

This week I am proud to host one of my favorite people I've met during my time blogging.  Tanantha from I Just Love My Apron is a fantastic cook.  Her photos are consistently vibrant and eye-catching.  She's made the most guest post appearances on LC.

Apart from that, Tanantha is one of the smartest and sweetest people blogging.  She has an infectious personality and a radiant smile.

Please visit I Just Love My Apron, not only will you be inspired by a fabulous cook but you will make a great friend.

Enjoy...

Hi Lazaro Cooks' Readers!

My name is Tanantha from I Just Love My Apron. I'm honored to make an appearance on this talented blog. Lazaro has been a great friend to me. Although we haven't met in person, I feel like we know each other. He's a big supporter, good listener, rock dude, and cooking mentor! Sometimes I feel like I ramble about my problems to him too much. Oh well...(hehe).

Laz loves pork belly and I love rolls so pork belly rolls are a combination of our personalities!

I learned this cooking method of pork belly from him. So, it's perfect to incorporate this into a dish. I fried up pork skin to make fries. It's a little tougher than what I would have hoped for but all in all tasted great! Fresh rolls are great in Summer. They're light, cool, and can have several variations. These rolls are perfect for an appetizer idea if you want to host a party. They can be made one day ahead or on the day of.

If you plan to make these ahead of time, wrap them with plastic wrap (as shown in the picture before) and keep refrigerated. Before serving or cutting, please pop them in a microwave for 30 secs. Without further ado, let's get cooking!

Pork Belly Roll with Mint Dressing
Yield: a lot!

Ingredients:
 2 lb pork belly, skinned (we will need skin later)

4 cloves garlic, chopped

1 Tbs oyster sauce

1 Tbs seasoning sauce (Golden Mountain brand)

1 Tbs soy sauce

1 Tbs sugar

Black pepper

Mint dressing recipe below

Rice paper wrappers and warm water

Cilantro

Shredded carrots

Red lettuce

Jalapeno, seeded, julienne

Mints

Vegetable oil to fry pork skin

Marinade

Directions:

• Mix all the seasonings except pork belly, its skin, and pepper in a bowl. Whisk until sugar melts.
• Place pork belly in a roasting pan or casserole dish that can hold the piece. Pour marinade over the meat. Marinate for 1 hour then flip the other side up. Continue marinate for another hour or over night.
• In a meantime, slice skin into matchstick. You really need a sharp knife to do this. The skin is tough.
• Heat up a sauce pan. Add oil. Wait until oil reaches 375 F or so. Place skin in a pan. Fry it until it's crispy. Be careful oil may splatter all over. I used paper towel to partially over the pan to protect myself from oil.
• When it's golden brown, remove them with a slotted spoon and place them in a prepared tray lined with paper towel. Season with salt and pepper.
• Pre-heat oven to 230 F.
• Roast pork in the oven for 2.5 hrs or so. Brush the juice in the pan on the pork at a halfway cooking time.
• When the pork is done, let it cook. Slice it lengthwise. Pour the juice in a small bowl.
• Let's make the dressing.

Fried pork skin

Mint Dressing:

• 3 Tbs mayonnaise
• 3 Tbs chopped mint
• 1 Tbs chopped basil
• 1 lime, juiced 

Directions:

• Put everything in a blender or food processor. Blend until mixed.

Mint dressing

 How to roll:

• Get ready to roll: put warm water in a big tray. Liner your working area with foil- shiny side down.
• Soak 2 rice wrapper 2 at a time. Soak until it's soft (about 1 min). Hold it up to get rid of excess water. Place one overlapping the other as shown in the picture. Place lettuce first, pork belly, drizzle roasted juice, carrots, cilantro, mints. 
• Roll it tightly and close the side; continue rolling. For more photo instruction, please check out my old post here.
• If you serve them right away, cut them to a bite size. Drop a teaspoon of mint dressing on top of each bite and serve on the side. 
• Garnish with small crispy pork belly and serve crispy skin on the side.

Cooked pork belly

Place everything on rice wrappers

and roll

Serve with fried pork skin and mint dressing

Wrap in a plastic wrap and keep them in a fridge for tomorrow lunch or dinner!