Roast pork crackling not crackling

tangent_soul, Oct 2, 6:29am
HOW DO I GET TO CRACKLE :( damit

noonesgirl, Oct 2, 6:39am
Rub oil & salt in then put under the grill for a few mins.

esther-anne, Oct 2, 6:46am
I have tried every which way to get the crackling right over countless years of cooking pork roasts-and I have never had success - believe me I have tried every tip ever posted on here and on culinary sites.

Last week I did it my way out of desperation.I took all the top off my leg pork then protected the roast with foil for cooking - slowly.I actually chopped up all the fat and rind into small pieces and cooked it in a seperate bowl alongsiide the roast!I took the roast out to rest then turned up the oven and I had a bowl full of the most amazing crackling ever.Melted in the mouth.

The purists will no doubt be disapproving - but it worked beautifully and I had a big bowl of cracking - not just some small bits that happened to get crisp as has happened in the past!!

fifie, Oct 2, 8:08am
I would do whatever works for you, sometimes i think its the leaner meat we get sold with not a lot of fat on it, therefore not good crackling either..

mamaa, Oct 2, 9:56am
Real pork crackle.scour crackle with very very sharp knife.length and width.then rub in salt, and oil.Put in the oven at about 500(or top number - I have gas) for about 1/2 hour, then turn down and cook as you would normal....You will find your crackle will be great.And then if you want peel of meat when out of the oven, and pop under the grill fat side up.carefull it will burn real quick.... delicious...

lythande1, Oct 2, 7:07pm
Crackle does not like liquid. Fail proof method is to cut the rind off the meat, put it on a rack and cook it like that. No oil, no salt, no nothing, perfect every time.

donnabeth, Oct 2, 7:59pm
esther-anne I do the same as you, but I cook the leg slowly first with the rind on, then remove it an hour or so before the meat is ready. It's very easy to remove at that stage and the fat is easier to cut. For a cholesterol laden treat, some of those fatty bits go crisp as well and taste delicious.

fisher, Oct 2, 8:15pm
And absolutely tasteless...LOL..

gavin166, Oct 2, 8:24pm
Mine's always pretty good... oil and salt... have heard lemon juice helps too.Crackling won't bubble and go crunchy if the temperature is too low so suggest upping the temperature.
I usually do hot oven at the start, when it's looking nice and coloured and crackly turn it down... slow roast, add veges, crank it up again for last 15 minutes or so.

esther-anne, Oct 2, 11:21pm
Yes I have heard lemon juice is good too-and vinegar, which I have tried to not much avail I must say.As I understand it most important is to make sure the scored rind is very very dry!!

Ah well - next time I will try slow roasting as suggested then taking off the rind and fat and finishing off as I did last week - tiny morsels of crispness putting both teeth and heart in danger I guess!! *eek*

kiwigoldie, Oct 3, 1:22am
score the skinthen poor boiling water over the top.. In the sink of course.. then dry thoroughly.. when cool, rub oil into the skin... it helps BOOST the cooking temp to sizzle the crackling at the initial high temperature... Salt just gives it that magic flavour as does the fat under the skin....(from fisher).......i have used this twice now and it is amazing crackle.

fisher, Oct 3, 2:38am
hahahahah so funny goldie.... I was just reading that and thinking...
geeesh that's exactly what I do and its perfik EVERY TIME.. the FAT under the skin is what gives it it's intense FLAVOUR..
DON'T take it off the meat..HIGH initial temp to get the fat bubblin then turn down to slow cook...

kiwigoldie, Oct 3, 3:02am
yes fisher it is perfect crackling...thanks so much for sharing that with us....i saw it a couple of months back and could never get the crackling right until i did it your way...perfect now!....and all gets eaten too....

dgluved, May 4, 2:15am
x1
I cheat, but it works. Cook the roast slowly, when it's done cut off the skin and scrape off the fat, wrap it in paper towels and microwave it for 30 seconds at a time till done.