Szechuan Spiced Pork Belly Wholemeal Tacos

Serves makes 8 tacos

Time 50 minutes

Ingredients

For the Tortillas

1½ cups wholemeal flour

½ tsp salt

½ tsp baking powder

¼ cup extra virgin olive oil

½ cup warm water

1 tsp ground Szechuan peppercorns

1 tbsp sesame seeds

For the Pork Belly

Canola oil, for frying

400g pork belly, skin removed and cut into 2 cm cubes

1 tsp Chinese five spice

1 tsp ground Szechuan peppercorns

1 tbsp salt

1 tbsp brown sugar

¼ cup wholemeal flour

2 tbsp chilli oil

For the Szechuan Salt

1 tbsp salt

1 tsp ground Szechuan peppercorns

For the Slaw

2 tbsp sesame seeds

2 cups shredded wombok

¼ cup spring onion, thinly sliced

1 heaped tbsp kewpie mayonnaise

¼ tsp sesame oil 

For Garnish

Extra chilli oil, kewpie mayo and toasted sesame seeds

Method

For the tortillas, combine flour, salt, Szechuan peppercorns, sesame seeds and baking powder in a bowl. Mix all dry ingredients until well combined.

Make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients and add the oil and water. Stir until a dough begins to form.

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and knead for 1-2 minutes until the dough is nice and smooth. Place dough into a bowl and cover with a clean damp cloth or tea towel and allow to rest for at least 15 minutes (up to 2 hours).

Once rested, divide the dough into 8 even balls and flatten. 

Using a rolling pin or tortilla press, roll out dough or use a press to create your tortillas. You want 3 mm thick circles (approx 15 cm in diameter). Do not stack.

To cook your tortillas, heat a frying pan over medium heat and cook each rolled out to a tortilla for 20-30 seconds either side. Remove each to a plate. Keep covered with a clean tea towel to avoid drying out. Repeat until all tortillas are cooked.

For the pork belly, using a deep fryer or heavy-based pot, add enough canola oil to deep fry. Heat oil to 170°C.

In a bowl, add the pork belly and all other ingredients except oil. Toss to combine.

Carefully place the pork belly into the hot oil and fry for 5 to 6 minutes or until golden and crispy. Using a slotted spoon, remove pork belly onto a plate lined with a paper towel.

While the pork is cooking, make the Szechwan salt by combining 1 tbsp of salt and 1 tsp of Szechuan peppercorns together.

Place the pork belly into a clean bowl and toss it in chilli oil and Szechuan salt.

Toast 2 tbsp of sesame seeds in a dry frying pan until golden and fragrant. Remove to a bowl. 

To make the slaw, place 1 tbsp of the sesame seeds (reserving the rest for garnish) into a bowl with the rest of the slaw ingredients. Toss to combine.

To build the tacos, place the tortillas onto a serving board and top with slaw and pork belly. Garnish with extra chilli oil, kewpie mayo and toasted sesame seeds.