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Roast suckling pig with roast pineapple and baby squid

by Tom Aikens
Item 1 of 1

This complexroast suckling pig recipe pairs different cuts of pork with sweet pineapple and meltingly soft sous-vide cooked squid. This is a very challenging recipe from Tom Aikens that requires a lot of preparation, so make sure you have the equipment needed before attempting it.

First published in 2015
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Ingredients

Metric

Imperial

Ribs and piglet leg

Pork stock

Confit squid

Pineapple fondant

Pineapple purée

Sage leaf beignets

  • 50g of plain flour
  • 25g of cornflour
  • 15g of baking powder
  • 50ml of iced water
  • 4 sage leaves
  • salt
  • vegetable oil, to deep fry

Little Gem lettuce

Sage and pineapple sauce

To plate

SAVE RECIPE

Equipment

  • Deep fat fryer
  • Muslin cloth
  • Blender
  • Thermometer
  • Sous vide equipment

Method

1
To make the stock, place a large roasting tray on a high heat and add the oil
  • 175ml of vegetable oil
2
Once the oil is hot, add the butter and when golden, add the bones. Do not move them around as this will reduce the heat in the pan
3
Cook the bones for 6-8 minutes and then stir them around. Cook for another 4-6 minutes
4
Chop the carrots into 2cm pieces and add along with half of the salt and pepper, the smoked bacon skin, garlic, bay leaves, rosemary and thyme
5
Stir well and then cook until the mixture begins to caramelise, which will take approximately 8-12 minutes
6
Chop the celery, onions and shallots into 2cm pieces and add to the pan. Cook for a further 8-12 minutes before adding the remaining seasoning
7
Once the ingredients are coloured, add the chopped pineapple and caster sugar and cook for a further 8-10 minutes on a lower heat until the pineapple becomes soft
8
Add the tarragon and parsley and cook for a few minutes before adding the cider vinegar
9
Reduce until dry and then add the cider and white wine. Reduce this by half, then add the chicken stock and top up with water
  • 500ml of cider
  • 500ml of white wine
  • 3l chicken stock
10
Bring to a simmer and remove the scum that rises to the surface with a ladle every 30 minutes. Simmer for 3 hours
11
After 3 hours, skim off the scum one last time then pass the stock through a colander. Press the bones and vegetables until all of the liquor is extracted and then pass through a fine sieve
12
Place the liquor back onto the stove, bring back to a simmer and skim off the froth again. Pass through a fine sieve, then a muslin cloth, then chill
13
To make the confit squid, clean and trim the squid and cut it into a long rectangle
14
Place the squid into a sous-vide bag and add the lemon peel, lemon thyme, lemon oil and seasoning. Sous-vide and cook at 48°C for about 8-10 hours
15
Refresh in iced water, then trim and cut into long thin strips, allowing a couple of pieces per person
16
To prepare the piglet leg, preheat the oven to 220°C/gas mark 7
17
Rub the leg in the olive oil and sprinkle over 1 tsp of the sea salt. Place on a wire rack that fits onto a tray
18
Place in the oven for 6-8 minutes to allow to crisp up before turning down to 140°C/gas mark 1 for approximately 1 1/2 hours or until cooked, then place into the fridge to set firm for 3-4 hours
19
Once set, slice with a serrated knife into 1cm thick pieces. Lay onto a sheet of buttered parchment paper on a tray, and season with salt and pepper. This will be reheated again at a later stage
20
To make the pineapple fondant, peel and dice the pineapple into pieces 2cm high by 2cm wide and 3cm long
21
Bring the pineapple, water, sugar, lemon juice, bay leaf, peppercorns, thyme and sage leaves to a simmer. Leave to infuse for 3 hours until cold
22
Add a little of the liquor to the pineapple. Sous-vide and cook at 84°C for 60 minutes, then refresh in iced water
23
When needed, reheat by placing the pineapple in a little of the cooking liquor and reducing to the consistency of double cream
24
To make the pineapple purée, dice the pineapple into 2cm squares. Place the oil in a large pan and once hot, add the butter
25
When golden brown, add the diced pineapple. Refrain from mixing or stirring the pineapple for at least 5 minutes
26
Add the sugar, cover with a lid and cook for 30-45 minutes, stirring every 5-8 minutes. The pineapple should begin to appear lightly caramelised
  • 20g of Demerara sugar
27
Once the pineapple has been cooking for about 30 minutes, add the sage. 5 minutes before you plan to remove the pineapple from the heat, add the lemon juice and finish cooking
28
Place in a blender and purée until very smooth, pass through a fine sieve and chill
29
To prepare the baby pork rack, preheat the oven to 160°C/Gas mark 2
30
Clean the pork rack with a knife by scraping any flesh down the bone towards the meat and trimming it off. The bones should be clean. Tie each rack with string in between each bone. This keeps the meat nice and tight as it cooks
31
Season with salt and pepper, then place over a medium heat and seal the meat on the non-fat side first. Turn and cook on the skin side, rendering the fat, for about 15-20 minutes
32
Place the pork rack into the oven and cook until the core reaches 52°C, then leave to rest
33
To make the beignet batter, mix the flour, cornflour, baking powder and water to a double cream consistency, then place the sage leaves into the batter
  • 50g of plain flour
  • 25g of cornflour
  • 15g of baking powder
  • 50ml of iced water
  • 4 sage leaves
34
Heat the deep-frying oil to 180°C and fry the beignets in a deep-fat fryer or using a large pan for 2 minutes until crisp. Season with salt and drain well on a paper towel before serving
  • vegetable oil, to deep fry
  • salt
35
Cook the lettuce, cut side down, in a hot pan with the vegetable oil, sugar, thyme, butter, sea salt and pepper
36
Cook for about 3-4 minutes with a lid on, then remove from the pan and cut across the top so that the leaves are neat. This will be reheated later
37
To make the sage and pineapple sauce, slice the pineapple into 3-4mm dices and sauté in a hot pan with half the butter
38
Add a little Demerara sugar and the sage and cook for a further minute. Add 400ml of the pork stock and 10g of the pineapple purée, reduce by a third, then add a little more butter and pepper
39
Once ready to serve, preheat the oven to 140°C/Gas mark 1
40
Place the suckling piglet in the oven and warm through for 8-10 minutes. Gently reheat the lettuce in a pan
41
Before plating, cut a pineapple into a rectangle. Trim the outside of the pineapple off and slice it very thinly, lengthways
42
Heat the pineapple in the oven on a sheet of baking parchment for 2 minutes and brush with a little of the pineapple syrup from the fondant. Season with black pepper, and cut into a small dice
43
To plate, place a sweep of the purée along the length of each plate, then warm the squid and reheat the sage and pineapple sauce
44
Place the piglet legs on the plate. Add the fondant at the top of the plate, followed by the reheated gem lettuce
45
Slice the pork rack and plate, followed by the sage beignets and the cutlets. Top with the squid, then drizzle the sauce around. Add some diced pineapple and serve immediately
First published in 2015
Tom Aikens

Tom Aikens is one of the most creative and talented chefs Britain has ever seen, with a restaurant empire to match.

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