Air Fryer Crispy Pork Belly with Honey Soy Glaze
Pork belly air-fried until the edges turn deeply golden and crisp, then tossed in a sticky honey soy glaze with garlic. Rich, savory and just sweet enough, with no added heat.
- Total
- 35 min
- Prep 10 · Cook 25
- Serves
- 1
- Difficulty
- Easy
You'll practice: Rendering fat · Reducing
- Savory
- Crispy
- Air fryer
Instructions
-
Pat the 200 g pork belly completely dry with paper towels, then cut it into 2 cm cubes. Dry skin is what lets the edges crisp instead of steam.
~6 min
Surface moisture steams and blocks browning, so drying the pork lets the air fryer crisp the edges instead.
-
Put the pork belly cubes in a bowl and toss with 0.25 tsp salt and 0.25 tsp black pepper until evenly coated.
~2 min
-
Set the cubes in the air fryer basket in a single layer with a little space between them. Air fry at 200°C for 15 minutes, shaking the basket once halfway, until the edges are golden brown and crisp.
~15 min
A single layer with space lets hot air circulate around each cube, so they crisp rather than steam.
If your air fryer runs hot, check the cubes at 12 minutes: you want deep golden edges with a little give in the center, not hard, dried-out nuggets.
Rendering fat Air-fry pork belly in a single layer so its fat renders and bastes the cubes; crowding traps steam and leaves them pale and chewy.
-
While step 3 cooks
While the pork air-fries, peel and finely grate the 1 garlic clove. Stir it in a small bowl with 1 tbsp soy sauce and 1 tbsp honey until the honey dissolves into a smooth glaze.
~2 min
Grating the garlic releases more flavor, and stirring dissolves the honey so the glaze coats evenly.
-
Pour the glaze over the hot crispy pork belly and toss with tongs until every piece is coated and glossy. Return the basket to the air fryer at 200°C for 3 minutes, until the glaze bubbles and clings.
~3 min
The short second pass lets the honey glaze bubble, thicken and cling without scorching.
The glaze burns fast because of the honey, so keep the final air-fryer pass short and pull the pork as soon as the coating bubbles and looks sticky rather than dark.
Reducing The brief hot pass bubbles the honey glaze so it thickens and clings; pull it as soon as it looks sticky, before it darkens and burns.
-
Transfer the glazed pork belly to a plate and spoon over any glaze left in the basket. Serve right away while the edges are still crisp.
~1 min