You can’t go past these sticky celery-pork belly bites. They only take 20 minutes to make! Teriyaki and honey give that signature sticky-sweet glaze to the luscious pork belly, which pairs perfectly with tender and aromatic celery root. It makes a wonderful lunch, dinner or holiday meal as well.
I love the hearty dishes that you can prepare in one pan or one pot only. Most of all, I like them during the cold season. There’s nothing better than a warming bowl of hearty, delicious food. Am I right? And that’s the case with this sticky celery-pork belly bites recipe.
Have you ever tried pork belly? Oh, so yummy! Pork belly is a lovely boneless cut of fatty meat from the belly of a pig. Yeah, that’s where the name comes from. Wink. In other words, pork belly is uncured, un-smoked and un-sliced bacon. Also, many chefs consider pork belly far superior to bacon. Well, I love both.
Bacon lovers, you don’t want to skip these recipes: rosemary peach chicken skillet, wonderful bacon-wrapped dates, easy asparagus with bacon, an unusual watermelon gazpacho, summerish bacon-wrapped zucchini corn skewers, a classic bacon-onion flammkuchen or these American bacon-peach pancakes. If you love bacon, then you have to try the pork belly, too.
Moreover, when cooked (braised or roasted) it becomes a tender, salty, meaty and hearty deliciousness. Thanks to the juicy thick layer of fat running along the top, it has an amazingly rich flavour, which makes it so tempting. Also, the fat simply melts in your mouth. Oh, my mouth is watering right now.
Stir-frying pork belly and then tossing it in a sticky and sweet teriyaki sauce will level up your pork belly and make it even more special. A mouth-watering meal served as a starter or as a main dish. Moreover, you can pair it with some homemade bread slices, mashed potatoes, rice or polenta. Yummy!
Cold season is the perfect time for celery root. In fact, you can find it in supermarkets and at your local market all autumn and winter long. But don’t confuse it with the celery stalks. They are the same family but different plants. How interesting!
How to describe a celery root? Hmm. Well, usually it has the size of a small Cantaloupe melon and not looking very beautiful. It’s a light brownish, covered with dirt, gnarled bulb-type root. It looks almost like a turnip. Also, already raw it has a distinctive smell (in a good way) and the texture is similar to a potato.
When it comes to the flavour, it’s a mixture between celery and parsley. I read somewhere that it has a nutty flavour, too. Besides tasting great, it’s also a good source of minerals, such as iron, potassium and calcium and is rich in vitamins B, C and K. And, it tastes delicious with pork belly tossed in teriyaki sauce. Wink.
Ingredients for 2 portions of sticky celery-pork belly bites:
- olive oil
- 200 g pork belly
- sea salt and pepper
- 300-400 g celery root
- 50 ml of white wine
- 3-4 spring onions
- 3 Tbsp of teriyaki sauce
- 2 Tbsp of honey (runny)
To begin, peel and slice the celery root into 1-2 cm thick slices and then cut these into 4 cm long and 2 cm wide pieces (or any size you prefer). Then, chop the pork belly into 3-4 cm chunks. Wash, trim and slice the spring onions.
Furthermore, drizzle some good olive oil into a large, non-sicking, frying pan (I used Jamie Oliver’s Tefal pan) or a shallow casserole pan and heat it up. At this point, add the pork belly chunks and season with salt and pepper. Then, add the celery and cook, by tossing regularly, for about 10 minutes or until golden brown.
Once the pork belly gets a lovely colour, add a splash of white wine (yes, all of it) to the pan to deglaze it and stir in the spring onions.
Last but not least, stir in the honey and teriyaki sauce and cook for 5 more minutes. Keep tossing until evenly covered with a shiny and sticky sauce.
Finally, serve these delicious sticky celery-pork belly bites when still steamy and shiny. This dish pairs great with some delicious bread, potatoes or some creamy polenta. A quick and delicious meal for lunch, dinner or a party.
Enjoy!
