Thai Apple & Fennel Salad with Crispy Pork Belly
Crisp apple, shaved fennel, cucumber and a big handful of Thai herbs in a lime–fish sauce dressing, topped with crispy five-spice pork belly and crushed peanuts.
Yield: serves 4 · Active: 30 min · Total: 3 hr (mostly hands-off pork belly roasting; 30 min if the belly is cooked ahead) · Season: apples are harvested August–November in Washington, New York and Michigan and keep through winter; fennel peaks fall through spring, mostly from California · Cuisine: Thai-inspired · Best eaten: midday
This salad hits every note Thai cooking is known for: salty, sour, sweet and spicy. The base is crisp apple, cucumber and paper-thin fennel with a big tangle of Thai basil, mint and cilantro. The dressing is bright lime and fish sauce. On top go strips of rich, crackly pork belly and crushed peanuts. The fennel and Thai basil both have a soft anise flavor that ties right into the five-spice on the pork.
Roast the pork belly a day or two ahead and the salad comes together in 15 minutes. Love Thai salads? Try my Thai Green Papaya Salad (Som Tam) with Lemongrass Grilled Chicken. More crispy pork belly ideas: the Crispy Triple Sweet Potato–Manchego Fritters.
Ingredients
Crispy pork belly
1½ lb pasture-raised pork belly (skinless), in one slab
1½ tsp Baja Gold sea salt
1 tsp Chinese five-spice powder
1 tbsp ghee or lard, for crisping
Thai lime dressing
3 tbsp fresh lime juice
2 tbsp fish sauce (Red Boat, no sugar added)
2 tbsp coconut aminos
1 tbsp raw honey
1 tbsp fresh ginger, finely grated
1 clove garlic, finely grated
1 small Thai chili, finely minced (or a pinch of red pepper flakes)
Salad
2 large crisp apples (Granny Smith, Honeycrisp or Pink Lady), very thinly sliced or julienned
1 small fennel bulb, shaved paper-thin (a mandoline helps), fronds saved for garnish
1 large English cucumber, halved lengthwise and thinly sliced
1 small red onion, very thinly sliced
1 cup Thai basil leaves (or regular basil)
½ cup fresh mint leaves
½ cup fresh cilantro leaves
½ cup roasted peanuts, lightly crushed
Lime wedges, to serve
Swaps
Peanut-free: use roasted cashews or toasted pumpkin seeds.
No pork belly: use thinly sliced grilled chicken thighs or seared shrimp.
Milder: seed the chili or leave it out.
Allergy note: contains peanuts and fish.
Method
Roast the pork belly (up to 3 days ahead)
Season. Pat the belly dry. Rub it all over with the salt and five-spice. For the best texture, refrigerate it uncovered overnight; at least 1 hour is fine.
Roast. Heat the oven to 300°F. Set the belly fat-side up on a rack over a sheet pan and roast 2–2½ hours, until a knife slides in easily and the fat has rendered and turned golden.
Chill and slice. Let it cool, then refrigerate until firm, at least 1 hour. Cold belly slices cleanly. Cut it into ¼-inch-thick strips.
Crisp. Just before serving, heat the ghee in a cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat. Crisp the strips 2–3 minutes per side, until golden and crackly. Drain on a paper towel.
Make the salad
5. Dressing. Whisk all the dressing ingredients together. Taste: it should be bright, salty and a little sweet with some heat. Adjust with more lime, fish sauce or honey.
6. Slice. As you slice the apples and fennel, toss them in a large bowl with a spoonful of the dressing so they don’t brown. Add the cucumber, red onion, basil, mint and cilantro.
7. Toss. Pour over most of the dressing and toss gently.
8. Plate. Pile the salad on a platter. Top with the crispy pork belly, peanuts and fennel fronds, then drizzle the last of the dressing over the pork. Serve right away with lime wedges.
Storage: Dress the salad just before serving; it’s best within an hour or two. The dressing keeps 1 week in the fridge. Roasted pork belly keeps 5 days refrigerated (crisp just before serving). For 8–12 guests, double everything, keep the components separate and assemble at the table.
Honey note: the honey stays raw since the dressing isn’t heated, but honey isn’t safe for babies under 12 months.
Nourishment Notes
Pasture-raised pork belly is the richest cut, best enjoyed in modest amounts and sourced well. Pigs that forage outdoors carry more vitamin D in their fat and a better omega-6 to omega-3 balance than confinement pork. Pork also brings B vitamins (especially thiamine), zinc and selenium. The slow roast renders the fat and turns connective tissue into gelatin, which brings glycine.
Apples bring pectin (a soluble fiber that feeds gut bacteria) and quercetin, mostly in the skin, so leave it on.
Fennel brings fiber, potassium and vitamin C, plus anethole, the compound behind its anise flavor. Fennel has been used to ease digestion for centuries, which makes it a natural partner for rich pork.
Thai basil, mint and cilantro do more than garnish. Thai basil brings its own anise-like compounds (like methyl chavicol), mint brings menthol, and cilantro adds carotenoids and vitamin K. Together they brighten the pork and help balance its richness.
Cucumber and red onion add crunch and hydration. Red onion brings quercetin and anthocyanins.
Fish sauce is a traditional fermented Southeast Asian condiment, rich in savory glutamates, so a little goes a long way. Lime adds vitamin C, ginger brings gingerols, and peanuts bring vitamin E, magnesium and healthy fats.
For your cycle: a light, crisp, protein-rich salad like this fits the follicular and ovulatory phases. The pork belly’s B vitamins and zinc, plus the fennel’s soothing effect on digestion, also make it a good pick in the luteal phase, when bloating tends to show up.
Sourcing
Pork belly: pasture-raised, from Niman Ranch, US Wellness Meats, White Oak Pastures or a local farmer or butcher
Fish sauce: Red Boat (no sugar added)
Coconut aminos: Coconut Secret
Apples and fennel: a farmers’ market in season. Organic apples are worth it, since you’re eating the skin.
Thai basil, ginger and Thai chilies: Asian markets have the best quality and prices
Peanuts: organic or Valencia, dry-roasted
Five-spice powder: a good organic blend, or toast and grind your own (star anise, cloves, cinnamon, Sichuan pepper and fennel seed)
Sea salt: Baja Gold
— Anna aka Food Marshall