Chicharrón
Roast pork belly with the skin on
We know this one. We just do not do it like this.
Chicharrón is a piece of pork belly with everything on it: meat, fat, skin, all together. It is cut into strips and cooked so that the skin turns glassy and crisp while the meat under it stays juicy. In Czech terms it is a pork crackling promoted to a main course.
We have something like it at home and the difference is in the execution. Here it is not a snack with beer, it is the centre of the plate and it gets the care that goes with that. The skin has to snap, not bend. The meat under it must not be dry. I had it in an ordinary local restaurant, nothing aimed at tourists, and it was done to the last detail.
Again with an arepa, fried plantain and a lime. And again: use the lime.
In Antioquia chicharrón is part of the bandeja paisa, a plate with beans, rice, minced meat, sausage, an egg, avocado and this on top. I had it on its own and that was plenty.
