I stopped in a few weeks ago to try K Restaurant’s (now regularly scheduled) Sunday brunch. Previously, brunch was an every now and then thing, so it’s nice to have a reliable standby.
It was also the first time I’d visited since the College Park restaurant got its full liquor license, so it was also nice to have a proper adult beverage with my brunch.
I sampled the Pork Belly Benedict, a take on the classic dish with pork belly instead of Canadian bacon and Southern style biscuits instead of English muffins. It was delicious.
And afterwards, I went into the kitchen and chef de cuisine Ryan McLaughlin showed me how he makes the yummy dish. He also agreed to share the recipe, which you’ll find below.
Unfortunately, pastry chef Michelle Hulbert wouldn’t part with her biscuit recipe, so you’ll have to find one of your own (or see if you can buy a bag of them from the restaurant).
Take a look at the video, then give the recipe a try. For inspiration, stop by K and try the real deal.
K Restaurant is at 1710 Edgewater Drive, Orlando. Brunch is served Sundays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. The phone number is 407-872-2332.
Pork Belly Benedict – K Restaurant
Ingredients for pork belly:
Half or quarter of whole pork belly, skin on
1 cup kosher salt
1 cup granulated sugar or brown sugar
1 teaspoon of TCM (curing salt)
Procedure for pork belly:
Mix dry ingredients first, then score skin on piece of pork belly not cutting through to meat, just the skin
Using all of the dry cure, cover pork belly evenly and refrigerate for 2 days
Rinse cure from belly and pat dry
Place pork belly in pan or Dutch oven and fill with either stock or beer or desired braising liquid and cover tightly and place in 350 degree oven for 3.5 to 5 hours or until fork tender and so the meat pulls easily
Remove for cooking vessel and place on sheet pan or plate and refrigerate overnight until completely cooled
On cutting board place belly skin side down and cut in to 4 oz. or desired portion sizes. Cutting the skin side down makes it easier to cut without compromising the tender meat
Ingredients for poached eggs:
2 pints of water
3.5 tablespoons of rice vinegar or white wine vinegar
Pinch of Kosher salt
2 eggs
Procedure for poached eggs:
Bring water to a boil and reduce to just below simmer
Crack eggs and drop in water
Allow to poach until desired fineness, about 2.5 to 3 minutes
Remove eggs with slotted spoon
Ingredients for hollandaise:
3.5 to 4 tablespoons of clarified butter
1 to 2 raw egg York
Procedure for hollandaise:
Over water bath on stove top, whisk egg yolk until opaque and double in volume and then gradually add clarified butter while continuously whisking until all incorporated
Remove from water bath and add hot sauce to desired heat is reached
A bath of this size will take ½ to 1 teaspoon of hot sauce to be similar to what we use
Final Steps:
Fry pork belly in 350 degree oil until golden brown and crispy and hot throughout
Break or cut biscuit in half and place on plate
Cut hot pork belly in two equal pieces and place on piece on each half biscuit
Add one poached egg on top of each piece of pork belly
Ladle 1 oz. of hollandaise on top of each egg and garnish with cut herbs if desired
