If you are like most people, you might be wondering whether pork belly can be reheated.
So, can you reheat the pork belly?
Yes, you CAN heat up your delicious pork belly leftovers and enjoy it all over again. The key is in the way of reheating it, though. Don’t do it through an oven. You can use a microwave or stove. But it would be better if you use indirect heat (i.e., on top of the low-medium burner) instead so that all those nutrients stay intact and taste just as good as they did when you first cooked them.
If you are planning to reheat the pork belly, it will be best if you do so a day after cooking. This can let the meat tenderize more so that it would taste even better the next day. You also have the chance to add more flavors to your heat it up!
Do not worry though, as reheating the pork belly will not change its taste too much. However, you might want to check whether or not there are any leftovers if you are planning to reheat your belly.
If there is an oversized portion of the pork belly, try slicing it into smaller pieces and reheat it in a pan or attempt to make some fried rice.
There are also alternatives such as chop it into smaller pieces and use it in a stir fry dish or similarly.
Pork Belly Reheating Tips
Before we dive into specific tips on how you can reheat pork belly in different ways, here are the general tips you can keep in mind:
- Reheat pork belly over medium heat with some fat remaining.
- Use the same spices you cooked with in the first place.
- Reheat on a flat, heated surface, such as a griddle or frying pan under low to medium heat.
- After the belly is reheated, also add new spices to enhance flavors.
- You can also cut the pork belly into smaller pieces for cooking again as desired. For example, you can slice it into 2-inch pieces for stir-frying or use the larger pieces to make a sandwich or some tacos!
- You can also choose to eat it just as is, with a side of rice.
- Don’t leave it as is though – make some changes so that you can make the most of your pork belly.
Can you reheat pork belly in the microwave?
Reheating pork belly in the microwave is an option, but make sure that you choose a low setting and try to cover up the meat with something that can prevent it from drying out.
Steps for reheating pork belly in the microwave
To reheat pork belly in the microwave, you will need to follow these steps:
- Place the pork belly on a microwave-safe plate. You can place it right in the center of your plate, and cut it into smaller pieces if you’d like to reheat it on separate plates.
- Place the plate in your microwave. Turn on the microwave for three minutes.
- Allow the plate to sit in there for another five minutes. Check it periodically during that time.
- If the pork belly still seems like it is cold, you can turn on your microwave again for another three minutes at a time.
- When the pork belly is fully heated and a healthy, shiny red color, it is done. You can then remove it from the microwave and serve it with side dishes such as rice or beans for a delicious meal.
Advantages of reheating pork belly in the microwave
It is easy to reheat pork belly in the microwave – no need to go outside and get something to cook it on.
You can also use the microwave to reheat the pork belly in pieces. This is a great way to try and add a little bit extra flavor flavor-wise because you can add some extra spices to enhance the flavor.
However, you can not reheat pork belly in the microwave for very long. As a general rule, no more than three minutes at a time should be allowed.
After reheating pork belly in the microwave, you can easily put it right onto a sandwich for a delicious taste of what you did with your pork belly earlier in the day
Disadvantages of reheating pork belly in the microwave
You can reheat pork belly in the microwave, but it will not be as tasty as if you were to use another method of reheating.
It will not be as flavorful or moist, because it is one of the drier reheating methods available to you.
This method also removes moisture from the meat itself and makes it taste somewhat like bacon with some intense salt on it.
After you microwave the meat, you can not mold it back into the original shape that you had before; instead, reheated pork belly will be in smaller pieces and it will be a little more crumbly.
Can you reheat pork belly on a stove?
Yes, you can reheat pork belly on the stove. Reheating pork belly on the stove requires high heat, but then gradually reducing it.
To start, place the belly in a pan on high heat for 5 minutes or more to warm up the cold pork. If you have a griddle or other flat surface, you can also use that.
Reheating pork belly on the stove will take around 10 minutes and can sometimes take less. The main thing to remember is that you don’t want to “cook” it too long – just reheat it until it’s warm enough.
Steps for reheating pork belly on the stove
Here are the simple steps you do use in reheating pork belly on the stove:
- Place the pork belly in a pan over the stove.
- Use medium to high heat, but don’t use too much.
- Heat it up for 5 minutes to warm it back up and make sure that there are no bacteria present at any time during this process.
- Reduce the heat drastically and cook the belly for another 5 minutes. No more than 10 should be allowed for this process since the meat has been cooled down and reheating it takes longer.
- If you have a lid, place it over top of the pork belly. If not, cover your stovetop with a sheet of aluminum. This will allow whatever steam that is created to rise and not sink back onto the pork belly.
Make sure you watch the heat level throughout this process because too much heat will cause your belly to cook instead of reheat, which means it’ll be dry and tough.
Advantages of reheating pork belly on the stove
The advantages of reheating pork belly on the stove include:
It is very easy to reheat pork belly on the stove as opposed to other methods. You might have a hard time finding an easier method of all the different ways to reheat pork belly. You can make it taste like it was fresh out of the oven, or like it was just made that day.
You can still season it however you want, and it will taste great! You can boost the flavor by adding extra spices to the reheating process or even making gravy. The same goes for other methods of reheating pork belly, but some will have more flavor than others.
Disadvantages of reheating pork belly on the stove
The temperature needs to be very high in order to heat up all parts of the meat. This will cause the outside edges to cook faster than some people would like. You can also burn your pork belly if you do not pay attention to the stove!
In order to reheat pork belly on the stove, you need a lot of pots and pans. You will want to use a large skillet or frying pan, a pot for boiling water as well as other cooking equipment that might be needed. This can take up a lot of space in your kitchen!
Can you reheat pork belly in the oven?
No, you can not heat up pork belly in the oven.
An oven will dry out the meat and you will have a dried up, tough piece of belly instead before long. Also, constant exposure to high heat from the oven will cause the meat to have a charred taste, and you might also burn your pork.
Learn more about reheating foods here.
Final Thoughts
If you have pork belly leftovers, there is nothing to worry about. This is because you can reheat pork belly leftovers.
However, it is very important to note that reheating does not guarantee the best taste and texture depending on how you do it.
There are different methods of reheating pork belly as shared above. Just explore and find out the best that works well with you.
I hope this helps.
