Airfry roasted pork belly (siu yuk) 烧肉 recipe

Roasted pork belly in Chinese style (aka siu yuk) is one of the food I’d love to make with my new Philips Airfryer. In fact, it was probably one of the reasons I bought an airfryer. Roasted pork belly is my all time favourite. Who doesn’t like the crackling skin? However, making them in an oven is quite messy which requires a lot of cleaning later on. I was hoping there would be less cleaning with an airfryer and taste as good if not better. 

The airfryer worked really well. The crackling pork belly was not only crispy on the skin but surprisingly juicy on the meat. So that’s a tick. However, I got to admit that it left a lot of oil and food residue in my airfryer after cooking. Besides that, due to the high fat content in the pork belly, the airfryer released a lot of smoke too when airfrying. Luckily, my airfryer was placed near the cooking hood. The ventilation fan was turned on all the time during the cooking. Otherwise, my house would smell like a BBQ pit. Overall, I think it’s still easier to clean an airfryer than an oven. Hence, I’d use it to make my yummy siu yuk again! 

Recipe:

1kg Pork belly

Vinegar (to brush on the skin) 

Coarse sea salt (enough to fully cover the skin)

Aluminium foil

Marinade: 

1 tablespoon shao xing cooking wine

1/4 teaspoon White pepper

1/2 tablespoon five spice powder

1 teaspoon salt

Note: The amount of marinade is estimated only. Adjust accordingly. 

1. Wash the pork belly with water and pat dry it with towel papers. 

2. Rub the shao xing cooking wine evenly on the meat of the pork belly only (strictly NOT on the skin). 

3. Repeat step #2 with white pepper, five spice powder and lastly salt. 

4. Place the pork belly skin side up on a plate and store it in the fridge overnight without any cover. This is a process to dry up the skin to achieve the cracking skin later on. 

5. Remove the pork belly from the fridge. Prick all over the surface of the pork belly skin with a sharp object (skewer/knife). Try to make as many small holes as possible but avoid pricking too deep into the meat. 

6. Lay the pork belly skin side up on a large sheet of aluminium foil (sufficient to wrap the pork belly). Wrap the pork belly tightly with the aluminium foil around the sides with only the skin exposed. The sides of the aluminium foil should be slightly higher than the pork belly so that it can hold the coarse sea salt in the next step. 

7. Lightly brush the skin with vinegar. Cover the pork belly fully with coarse sea salt until you can't see the skin. 

8. Place it in the basket of the airfryer. Airfry for about 25-30mins in a pre-heated airfryer at 180c.

9. Remove the pork belly from the airfryer. Gently remove the aluminium foil and scrap off the layer of coarse sea salt. 

10. Increase the airfryer temperature to 200c. Return the pork belly into the airfryer. Airfry at 200c for another 10-15mins or until the skin is crackling. 

11. Cut the pork belly and serve. 

Note: Adjust the cooking time accordingly as the size and thickness of the pork belly is different. 

Refer to the following video for the steps:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fr6xswgiIyA

Airfry grilled chicken thighs recipe

Airfryer is my great kitchen buddy nowadays. And it works really well on meat! I've been making some quick and easy grilled chicken for dinner when I'm busy. What you really need is to prepare the meat and leave the rest of the job with the Airfryer. How easy?!

Well, so I thought I'd share this easy and yummy grilled chicken thighs recipe. The chicken thighs were cooked in just 12 mins at 180c in my Philips Airfryer. My oven would probably take about 18-20mins to get the same browning effect. 

Other than the shorter cooking time, the meat was cooked to perfection too. The chicken thighs were nicely brown and the meat was tender as well as juicy!

Recipe: 

2 skinless chicken thighs 

1-2 sprigs of fresh rosemary

3 sprigs of fresh parsley

A generous sprinkle of garlic powder (all over the chicken thighs)

sprinkle of chilli flakes (adjust according to your liking)

1/2 lemon 

salt and pepper to taste

1. Rinse the chicken thighs with water and pat dry them with towel paper. 

2. Remove the rosemary leaves from the sprigs and discard the sprigs. 

3. Chop or mince the fresh parsley. 

4. Marinate the chicken thighs with parsley, rosemary leaves, garlic powder, chilli flakes, lemon juice, salt and pepper for at least an hour or longer for better flavour. I marinated the chicken overnight in the fridge. 

5. Grill for about 12 mins or until brown in a pre-heated airfryer at 180c. Adjust the timing accordingly as the size or thickness of the chicken thighs used are different.

6. Serve while it's warm.    

Airfried sweet potato recipe

I finally bought a Philips Airfryer XL! Looks like I'll need a bigger kitchen if I'm to get any more new appliances from now on as this new gadget is taking up a lot of space.

What's the first food you cooked with your airfryer? Mine was sweet potato fries! Strange choice? Well, I fell in love with sweet potato fries ever since I ordered it from Roll'd - a Vietnamese food chain in my office building. I would usually order a side sweet potato fries to accompany my lunch meal. Therefore, I want to create a healthier version of sweet potato fries that I could eat it everyday! :)

The verdict? I must say that the airfryer is a fantastic invention. The freshly cut sweet potato was turned into crunchy fries in just 12 mins with little to no oil! Of course, the healthier airfried version differs from the normal deep fried version but it's close. It's crispy on the skin but without the oil taste that you get from deep-frying in oil. I think it is a very good alternative to enjoy a healthier version of "fried" food. 

Besides that, I love the cleaning part too. You just need to wash the basket and the pan. Both parts are dish washer safe. So far, the interior of the appliance had no food residues after my cooking. Hence, I merely wiped it using a damped cloth.

Recipe:

1 big sweet potato 

1/2 tablespoon oil (I used rice bran oil)

1. Cut sweet potato into strips. 

2. Put the sweet potato strips in a ziplock bag. Add in oil, ziplock it and shake so that each strip is coated with oil.

3. Place the sweet potato fries onto the basket of the airfryer. Airfry for about 12 mins in a pre-heated airfryer at 180c.