Ingredients

Method

In a square of muslin, place the shallots, bay leaves, thyme, bruised garlic and cloves and seal with some string.

With a sharp knife remove the rind on the belly pork. You can do this like you would remove the skin from a fillet of fish. Then remove all the bones and cut the meat into pieces about 2.5cm cubes.

Place a large heavy based saucepan onto a low heat and add the pork fat. When the pork fat has melted add the meat and cook until the pork pieces are browned on all sides. Remove from the fat with a slotted spoon.

Strain the remaining fat in the pan through a sieve and set aside.

Place the pork back into the saucepan, add the muslin bag and the water and cook on a very low heat for 4 hours. Stir every 30 minutes. Check after 2 hours that there is still some water and the pan hasn't gone dry and keep checking through the cooking period. If it looks dry add more water.

After 4 hours, remove the muslin bag and add the remaining ingredients (salt, cayenne and quatre-épices) and cook for a further 30 minutes.

Remove the pan from the heat and allow the mixture to cool slightly then remove the meat from the saucepan and using two forks shred the meat and place into a bowl.

Add the reserved fat and mix through thoroughly. Place the mixture into a large container or a few smaller containers and seal tightly. Place in the refrigerator.

This is super served on crunchy bread and can be stored in the fridge for 2 weeks.

N.B Quatre-Épices is a mix of spices used to flavour terrines, pâtes and charcuterie. It is made of equal quantities of powdered white pepper, nutmeg, cloves and ginger. Chilli, cinnamon or mace may also be added depending on what you are making.