Roast Pork With Crackling

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 190C/375F/gas 5. Score the skin at 1/4 inch intervals running with the grain - ask your butcher to do this if possible because the rind, particularly of free range pork, can be quite tough. This is to give you a really good crackling and make it easier to carve.
2. Put the pork, skin-side down, on a chopping board. Season with salt and pepper and sprinkle with freshly minced herbs. Roll up tightly and tie with cotton string. Sprinkle some salt over the rind and roast the joint in a roasting tin in the preheated oven. Allow 25-28 min for each 1lb. Baste with the rendered pork fat every now and then.
3. Just before the end of the cooking time, transfer the pork to another roasting tin. Return the meat to the oven and increase the temperature to 230C/450F/gas 8 to crisp the crackling further.
4. When the joint is cooked the juices should run clear. Put the pork on to a warm carving dish and leave to rest for 10-15 min in a low oven before carving. This dish goes well with spiced aubergine, lentilles du puy, roast potatoes and a green salad.