Grilled Pork Belly

These grilled strips of pork belly, or Inihaw na Liempo, are marinated in a classic Filipino barbecue flavor that is sweet, savory, and slightly tangy. Although typically cooked over a charcoal grill, you can conveniently grill them in the oven, too.

What is Inihaw na Liempo? Similar to Filipino Barbecue Pork Skewers, Inihaw na Liempo is a grilled pork belly marinated in soy sauce, lemon or calamansi juice, sugar, and lots of garlic. Of course, it won't be genuinely Filipino without a sawsawan or a dipping sauce.

Jump to:

• Why you’ll love this recipe
• What you’ll need
• Ingredient notes and substitutions
• How to make this recipe
• Frequently asked questions and tips
• The key takeaway
• Watch how I make it here
• You may like these too
• 📖 Recipe

Why you’ll love this recipe

• This Inihaw na Liempo recipe can be prepped ahead for last-minute grilling.
• Because the pork belly slices are thin, they absorb the marinade well and don't take too long to cook.
• You can grill them in the oven as if they were done on an outdoor grill.

What you’ll need

Ingredient notes and substitutions

• Pork belly strips: A cut known for bacon and Lechon Kawali with a melt-in-your-mouth combination of tender meat and juicy fat layers. You can either buy a slab and do the slicing yourself or skip the extra work and buy them already sliced. You want a good fat-to-meat ratio, meaty with enough fat to make them delicious and moist. You can have it with or without the skin, though the skin gets too chewy and inedible for some. If you can, buy them boneless and ideally no thicker than ½ inch.
• Soy Sauce: You can use an all-purpose or light soy sauce for this recipe.
• Lemon or Calamansi: I used lemon but prefer calamansi if I have them. Calamansi (or Kalamansi) is a citrus fruit commonly used in Filipino cuisine. Its flavor is quite sour like a cross between lime and sour orange. If calamansi is not readily available, go ahead with the lemons.
• Banana or Tomato Ketchup: Banana ketchup is commonly used in the Philippines as a condiment or cooking ingredient. Primarily made of bananas, it is sweeter and less tangy than tomato ketchup which you can also use. They both give that reddish color and the acidity that helps tenderize the meat.

How to make this recipe

Prepare the marinade: (1)Grate or finely mince the garlic. (2)In a cup or bowl, combine the soy sauce, lemon or calamansi juice, brown sugar, ketchup, garlic, and ground pepper (to taste). Mix them together. The marinade has to be sweet, salty, garlicky, and a little tangy — taste and adjust.

TIP: I like using a blender to make the marinade into somewhat of a homogenous mixture that the meat absorbs better.

Marinate: (3)Place the pork belly slices in a container or a resealable bag and pour the marinade over them. (4)Make sure the meat is covered entirely. (5)Cover or seal and refrigerate for at least 4-8 hours.

Grill and make the basting sauce: (6)Preheat the oven to 425°Fahrenheit (220° Celsius). Line a baking sheet with a double layer of aluminum foil for easy cleanup. (7)Arrange the pork belly slices on the baking sheet.

(8)Transfer the leftover marinade to a small saucepan and make your basting sauce. (9)Cook the sauce over medium heat for about 10 minutes, occasionally stirring, to slightly thicken the sauce resembling a glaze and prevent cross-contamination.

(10)Bake it in the oven for 20 minutes. Then take it out and baste with the sauce using a brush. (11)Turn over the pork belly slices.

(12)Bring it back to the oven and bake for another 20 minutes. (13)When done, baste the meat once more, then broil on low for about 3 minutes until you get a nice caramelization on the outside. Watch carefully, so they don't burn.

TIP: Adjust your baking time depending on the thickness of the meat. The thinner the slices, the faster they cook.

Make the dipping sauce: In a cup or bowl, combine the vinegar, minced shallot or red onion, chopped chilies, sugar, salt, and pepper to taste. Stir them together. This dipping sauce or sawsawan is so good and versatile that I use it for other dishes like Okoy or Ukoy (Shrimp and Vegetable Fritters) and Filipino Beef Tapa (Tapsilog).

Serve: Grilled pork belly goes best with white rice or Java rice, a side of Achara (pickled vegetables) or Eggplant salad, and a spicy vinegar dipping sauce.

Frequently asked questions and tips

The key takeaway

Basting the meat is an essential step you shouldn't skip. Brushing the outside with the sauce makes the meat more flavorful and creates a barrier so it doesn't dry up.

Watch how I make it here

You may like these too

📖 Recipe