If you love the taste of pork, especially pork belly, then there is no dearth of recipes and dishes in the world you can try. But when it comes to true-blue Indian pork belly dishes, Kerala cuisine has the best options. Pork dishes from Kerala—in fact, all meat dishes from the state—are usually spicy and flavoured with coconut oil, which gives it a brilliant and unique flavour. If you are looking for just such a delicious, spicy pork dish from Kerala, then Pork Peralan is the answer.
What makes Pork Peralan the best dish for pork-lovers to try? It could be the fact that Pork Peralan is a popular and traditional dish enjoyed especially by Kerala’s Christian population, especially around festive occasions. Or it could be thanks to the fact that this spicy dish oozes with the rich and yummy fat released when pork belly is cooked to perfection.
Video courtesy: YouTube/Kerala Tourism
Cooked with rich and intense spices like red chilli, cinnamon, cloves, cumin, garlic and ginger, Pork Peralan is a naturally spicy dish. Most people like the dish with a thick gravy so that it can be eaten with appam, porotta and even rice. Others prefer the gravy dry so that it sticks to the pork belly pieces really well. Even this version can be enjoyed with appam, porotta and rice. So, the gravy consistency is actually tailored according to your own taste.
Sounds like a wonderful, spicy and rich dish, right? If you want to enjoy this Kerala-style pork dish, then here’s the recipe. Give it a try and enjoy.
Ingredients:
500 g pork belly chunks
2 large onions, sliced
2 tomatoes, chopped
1 tbsp ginger garlic paste
3 cloves
2 cardamoms
1 cinnamon stick
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp fennel seeds
½ tsp black peppercorns
½ tsp mustard seeds
2 tbsp red chilli powder
2 tsp coriander powder
1 tsp turmeric powder
1 tbsp vinegar
½ cup hot water
Salt, to taste
3 tbsp coconut oil
Method:
1. Place the cardamoms, cloves, cumin seeds, fennel seeds, black peppercorns, mustard seeds and cinnamon in a mixer jar and grind to a fine powder.
2. Heat the coconut oil in a large pan.
3. Add the sliced onions and saute until they turn golden brown.
4. Add the ginger garlic paste and cook until the raw smell goes away.
5. Now, add the ground spices, red chilli powder, coriander powder, turmeric powder and mix well.
6. Cook for a few minutes then add the tomatoes.
7. Once the tomatoes are half cooked, add the washed and cleaned pork belly chunks and salt to taste.
8. Saute the pork belly properly until the pork belly fat starts releasing.
9. Now add the vinegar and water, mix well and cover to cook until the pork belly is cooked and tender.
10. Once the pork is cooked and the gravy has dried out, switch off the flame and let the Pork Peralan rest for half an hour.
11. Serve the Pork Peralan with appam, porotta or rice.