This pizza lover SURVIVED 2 weeks of no carbs, no dairy, and no soy, and this lechon kawali aka Filipino crispy pork belly was a huge reason why. It was the cornerstone of a Saturday night potluck I hosted in the middle of my elimination diet with Hybrid Gym, and the pork belly sourced from Golden Pig HK was sooo satisfying that I was happy to skip the carbs and cheese that night. It’s unbelievably tender and juicy thanks to simmering the pork with garlic and other traditional Filipino aromatics, but the skin still gets super crispy in my Cosori air fryer.
Honestly this is EVEN BETTER than the typical deep fried lechon kawali because the outside of each piece doesn’t get hard or dried out, which can happen sometimes when deep frying since each piece has direct contact with the hot oil. You can see in the photo below the difference between the outer layer of pork belly and the inside. You also don’t have to deal with the dangerous splatters that are bound to happen when deep frying something so juicy, and there’s no big pot of oil to have to dispose of.
How to get CRISPY pork belly in the air fryer:
- Cover the cooked pork belly skin with salt to draw out moisture from the skin while it sits uncovered in the fridge overnight
- Pat it dry with paper towels
- Prick as many tiny holes in the skin as possible and cover it with thicker rock salt or flaky sea salt to encourage the skin to bubble and pop, since the moisture being drawn out will try to escape through the holes. Make sure to put a lot more than I did in the photo below and cover the whole layer of skin evenly – you can actually see that the spots that had the most salt have the most bubbles in the skin!
I’m never going back to deep frying lechon kawali when I can use my air fryer instead! It’s perfect for eating with suka, or spiced vinegar that uses subtle cane vinegar for the perfect balance to the rich lechon kawali, or with Mang Tomas lechon sauce that’s a sweet and savory option that you’ll always see at Filipino parties.
You can also make my sizzling sisig from the cookbook with my air fryer lechon kawali, so make sure you’ve pre-ordered a copy to get the recipe. It’s perfect with garlic rice for a complete meal!
CRISPY Air Fryer Pork Belly – Filipino Lechon Kawali
Ingredients
Lechon Kawali:
- 1-2 lbs skin-on pork belly (depending on what will fit in your air fryer)
- 6 cloves crushed garlic
- 4 dried bay leaves
- 2 tbsp white or cane vinegar
- 1 tbsp whole black peppercorns
- 1-2 tbsp salt (based on the weight of your pork belly)
Air Frying:
- 3-6 tbsp rock salt or flaky sea salt, more as needed
Spiced Vinegar (substitute with Mang Tomas lechon sauce):
- 2–4 tbsp (30–60 ml) cane vinegar (substitute with white vinegar with a splash of water)
- 1–2 cloves garlic, crushed
- ½–1 chopped Thai bird’s eye chili
- Fresh ground pepper
Instructions
- Fill a pot with the pork belly, bay leaves, garlic, white vinegar, peppercorns,
- salt and enough water to cover everything.
- Heat it over high heat until it comes to a boil, then lower the heat and cover, letting it simmer for 1 to 1.5 hours. This will help the meat stay tender but not fall apart, and the pig skin will be soft and gelatinous so it will fry up crispy. Drain the meat and let it cool to room temperature.
- Pat dry and cover the skin with salt, then store it in the refrigerator uncovered overnight so the moisture dries out. If storing for longer, then transfer it into an airtight container after it has dried; it will keep for another 2 to 3 days.
- When you’re ready to air fry, preheat the air fryer to 400F (200C) or as high as your air fryer can go. Pat the skin dry again, wiping off any of the salt.
- Wrap the bottom and sides of the pork belly with aluminum foil to protect it from direct exposure to the heat circulating in the air fryer.
- Cover the top of the skin with layer of rock salt or flaky sea salt – this will help the skin bubble and pop in the air fryer.
- Air fry for 25-40 minutes until the skin is golden brown and crispy to your liking. Transfer to a cutting board and wipe off the excess salt while letting the pork rest for at least 5 minutes.
- Cut the lechon kawali into strips, then 1 inch pieces.
- Serve with spiced vinegar by simply combining the cane vinegar, garlic, black pepper, and chilis, or with Mang Tomas lechon sauce and enjoy those crispy, juicy nuggets of deliciousness.
Notes
If you make this recipe, I’d love to see the final product. Tag your photos on Instagram with @IndulgentEats and #SarapSundayz so I can see them!
