Maple Pork Belly Tart with Herb Crust

Brown the pork belly first—this takes longer than you’d think, and you want the fat to actually render before the syrup hits. Three kinds of umami stacked on top of each other: tamari, maple, chili paste. The crust is just there to hold it up.

Why You’ll Love This Maple Pork Belly Tart

Takes 85 minutes total. Most of that’s the oven. You’re not actually cooking.

Pork belly gets soft and sticky at the same time—the maple syrup pulls the shallots sweet and the tamari keeps it from tasting like dessert. The crust snaps when you bite it. Flaky. Actually flaky, not pretend.

Works as a main dish. Works cold the next day if you have leftovers, which you probably won’t.

Looks impressive. Looks like you spent three hours on it. Didn’t.

What You Need for a Savory Tart with Maple Glazed Pork Belly

All-purpose flour. Three hundred and twenty grams—wait, no. The recipe says 160. Measure it dry, don’t pack it.

Baking powder. Three milliliters. Tiny amount. Makes the crust rise just enough without being fluffy.

Salt. A pinch. Goes in the dough.

Scallions. Three of them, chopped. The green parts mostly. Adds this onion thing to the crust without making it soggy.

Cold butter. A hundred grams. Diced small. Cold matters. If it’s warm, the crust doesn’t get those layers. Doesn’t work.

Oat milk. Sixty milliliters. Dairy milk works. So does water and a teaspoon of oil, honestly. Oat milk just tastes good.

Pork belly. Three hundred and fifty grams. Thick slices—one centimeter. Not thinner. Thinner means it dries out while the sauce reduces.

Avocado oil. Twenty milliliters. Gets hot without smoking. Olive oil burns at this temperature. Not worth it.

Shallots. Two large ones. Sliced. They go under the pork and also in the glaze, so they’re both sweet and jammy by the time you eat it.

Maple syrup. Seventy-five milliliters. Real maple. Not the cheap stuff—the cheap stuff is mostly corn syrup and it doesn’t have the depth.

Tamari sauce. Forty-five milliliters. Salty. Deep. The tamari and maple together is what makes this actually taste like something.

Chili paste. Five milliliters. Not much. Just enough so you taste it in the back. Balances the sweet.

Black pepper. Season at the end. Good pepper. Matters.

How to Make the Crust for a Pork Belly Tart with Herbs

Line the sheet with parchment. Matters for cleanup, matters for not sticking.

Food processor. Flour, baking powder, salt. Pulse it. You’re mixing without making heat.

Throw in the scallions. Pulse again. Chop them fine. They should disappear into the flour almost.

Drop the cold butter in. Pulse. Don’t let it turn into powder. You want pea-sized pieces. Actual pea-sized. If you go too far, the crust gets dense. If you don’t go far enough, it’s shaggy and won’t hold together.

Pour the oat milk in. Pulse. Stop when it just barely starts coming together. Overwork it and it gets tough. Stop too early and it falls apart.

Take it out. Press it into a disc with your hands—not too hard, just enough so it holds. Flour the surface. Roll it out three millimeters thick. That’s thin. If it’s thicker, the bottom won’t bake through before the top burns.

Cut it into a square. Twenty-eight centimeters. Use a knife. A straight edge if you have one.

Move it to the parchment-lined sheet. Fold the edges up one and a half centimeters. Forms a border. This is what holds the pork in while it cooks.

Freeze it. Seriously. At least five minutes. Cold dough bakes better. The butter stays in little pockets instead of melting into the flour.

How to Get Maple Glazed Pork Belly Caramelized and Tender

Heat the oven to 205 degrees Celsius. Four hundred Fahrenheit. Center rack. Gets the crust crispy and the pork done at the same time.

Large skillet. Medium heat. Avocado oil in. Let it get hot—not smoking, but hot.

Pork belly in. Brown it. You’re not cooking it through. You’re getting color. Three minutes a side. Maybe four. Watch it. The fat should be turning translucent at the edges.

Drain most of the fat. Leave some. Flavor.

Put the pork back. Shallots on top of the slices. Spread them out.

Cover it. Three minutes. Steams a little. The shallots go soft, the pork stays moist.

Now the glaze. Maple syrup, tamari, chili paste. Pour it over. Doesn’t have to be perfect. It pools in the pan and coats everything as it reduces.

Cover again. Simmer. Twelve minutes. The sauce thickens. The pork gets softer. The shallots go dark and sweet and almost fall apart.

Uncover it. This is where it happens. The sauce keeps reducing. Stir halfway through. You’re watching for it to go from liquid to sticky. Should be glossy. Coating everything. Takes maybe eight to ten minutes. Could be twelve. Depends on how much surface area. Depends on your pan.

Transfer the pork to a plate. Keep it somewhere warm. The shallots stay in the pan—they go on the crust.

Maple Pork Belly Tart Tips and Common Mistakes

The crust should be completely frozen when you assemble, or it’ll be soggy on the bottom. No thawing. Straight from freezer to oven.

The pork belly doesn’t have to be perfectly even thickness. Thicker parts just take longer to get tender. Thinner parts get chewier. Either works.

Tamari is saltier than regular soy sauce. If you use soy sauce instead, add less. Taste it as it reduces. You’ll know.

The chili paste—use less if you don’t like heat. Use more if you do. Five milliliters is just a background note.

The shallots under the crust. They stay raw until the crust goes in the oven. Then they steam a little and get soft. They’re the foundation of the whole thing.

Oven temperature matters more than you think. If it’s too cool, the crust doesn’t crisp and the pork doesn’t caramelize. Too hot, the crust burns before the pork cooks. Four hundred is the sweet spot.

The pork goes in sliced. One centimeter thick. Not thinner. Thinner and it dries out. Try it and you’ll see.

The sauce reduces almost dry. Almost. There should be a glaze, not a puddle. If you leave liquid, the pork steams instead of caramelizes.

Make the crust the morning of if you want. Wrap it. Freeze it. It lasts all day. The pork belly takes maybe forty minutes total—browned, glazed, ready to go.

Maple Pork Belly Tart with Herb Crust

By Emma Kitchen

Prep:

30 min

Cook:

55 min

Total:

1h 25min

Servings:

8

Ingredients

• 160 g all-purpose flour
• 3 ml baking powder
• 1 pinch salt
• 3 scallions chopped
• 100 g cold unsalted butter diced
• 60 ml oat milk
• 350 g fresh pork belly cut into 1 cm thick slices
• 20 ml avocado oil
• 2 large shallots sliced
• 75 ml maple syrup
• 45 ml tamari sauce
• 5 ml chili paste

Method

1. Crust
2. 1 Use parchment to line a baking sheet.
3. 2 Pulse flour, baking powder, salt in food processor. Add scallions chopped, pulse to mince fine.
4. 3 Drop in butter, pulse until pea-sized crumbs form.
5. 4 Pour in oat milk; pulse until dough starts coming together.
6. 5 Remove dough, press into disc. Flour surface and roll out 3 mm thick. Cut edges to 28 cm square.
7. 6 Place on baking sheet, fold edges up 1.5 cm to form border.
8. 7 Freeze while preparing pork.
9. Pork Belly Confit
10. 8 Center oven rack, heat to 205°C (400°F).
11. 9 Heat oil in large skillet medium heat. Brown pork belly slices; drain excess fat.
12. 10 Put pork back, spread shallots over slices. Cover, cook 3 minutes.
13. 11 Add maple syrup, tamari, chili paste. Cover, simmer 12 minutes.
14. 12 Uncover, let sauce reduce nearly dry, stirring halfway. Season with black pepper.
15. 13 Transfer pork to plate; keep warm.
16. Assembly and Baking
17. 14 Spread shallots over crust base, layer pork slices atop.
18. 15 Bake 20-23 minutes till crust golden and pork caramelized.
19. 16 Serve with fennel and broccoli salad or greens.

Nutritional information

Calories

410

Protein

22g

Carbs

18g

Fat

28g

Print Recipe Save to Pinterest

Frequently Asked Questions About Maple Pork Belly Tart

Can I make the crust ahead of time? Yes. Make it, freeze it, keep it for three days. Wrapped. Use it straight from the freezer. Don’t thaw.

What if I don’t have oat milk? Regular milk works. Whole milk is better. You could use water with a teaspoon of melted butter. Dough won’t taste as good but it’ll work.

How do I know the pork is done? Falls apart when you push it with a spoon. If it’s still firm, it needs more time in the pan before the glaze goes in.

Can I use a different cut of pork? Belly is the one that works here. Pork chops get dry. Tenderloin is too lean. Belly has fat. Fat is what makes this taste like something.

What do I serve with this? Greens. A salad with something acidic. The tart is rich and sweet and salty all at once—you need something bright to cut through it. Fennel works. Arugula works. Nothing complicated.

Why does my crust burn but the pork isn’t done? Oven’s too hot. Lower it five degrees next time. Also, make sure the pork is fully brown before the glaze goes in—otherwise it steams instead of finishing while the crust bakes.