Torta de Castacán con Queso

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Heavy 6-quart pot for simmering the belly
• •Cast iron skillet or comal for frying and toasting
• •Volcanic stone molcajete for the salsa de habanero
• •Wire rack for draining the pork
• •Glass jar for the cebollas encurtidas
• •Nitrile gloves for handling the habaneros

Instructions

1. 1

   Make the cebollas encurtidas

   Drop the sliced red onion into a bowl of boiling water for exactly ten seconds. Drain immediately. Transfer to a glass jar and pour in the half cup of naranja agria juice. Add the dried oregano and half teaspoon of salt. Stir. Let it sit for at least thirty minutes while you cook the castacán. The onions will turn bright pink. This is not optional garnish. In Yucatán, the pickled onions are part of the dish.

   If you cannot find naranja agria, mix two parts orange juice with one part lime juice and one part white vinegar. It is a compromise, not an upgrade, but it will get you close.
2. 2

   Simmer the pork belly

   Place the pork belly strips in a heavy pot. Add the garlic, bay leaves, salt, and quarter cup of naranja agria. Cover with cold water by one inch. Bring to a gentle simmer over medium heat. Skim the gray foam in the first ten minutes. Lower the heat and cook at a lazy bubble for two hours, until the meat is tender enough to pierce with a fork and the skin has softened. Cold water start, slow simmer. A rolling boil toughens the belly.

3. 3

   Drain and dry the castacán

   Lift the pork belly out of the broth and let it drain on a wire rack. Pat each piece dry with a clean cloth. The skin must be dry before it hits the fat. Wet skin in hot lard is dangerous and it will not crisp. You can do this step up to a day ahead. The pork actually fries better when it has cooled and the skin has tightened.

4. 4

   Make the salsa de habanero

   Char the habaneros directly over an open flame or on a hot comal until the skin blackens in patches, about two minutes per side. Drop them into a molcajete with the quarter teaspoon of salt. Grind to a rough paste. Add the quarter cup of naranja agria and grind again until the salsa is loose. Taste it. It should bite hard and finish citrus. In Mérida this is called salsa xnipec, dog's nose, because it will make you sniff like one.

   Wear gloves. Habanero oil stays on your hands for hours. If you rub your eye after handling these, you will remember it for the rest of the day.
5. 5

   Fry the castacán

   Heat the tablespoon of lard in a heavy skillet or cast iron pan over medium-high heat. Place the pork belly skin-side down and press it flat. Do not crowd the pan. Fry for about four to five minutes until the skin turns deep golden and crackles audibly. Flip and fry the meat side for another three minutes until the edges turn mahogany. La manteca es el sabor. The belly is releasing its own fat now and frying in it. That is castacán. Pull the pieces onto a board and let them rest for two minutes.

6. 6

   Toast the pan francés and melt the queso

   Split each pan francés lengthwise without cutting all the way through. Smear a little lard on the cut sides. Heat the comal or a wide skillet over medium. Press the open bread cut-side down onto the comal until the inside toasts to a light gold, about a minute. Lift the top half, lay the slices of queso de bola onto the bottom half while it is still on the heat, and let the cheese soften and slump into the bread. Queso de bola is the cheese. Edam. Yucatán has eaten it since the Dutch traded it through the port of Sisal in the nineteenth century. No cheddar. No Monterey Jack. No me vengas con atajos.

7. 7

   Build the torta

   Chop or slice the fried castacán roughly. Pile it generously over the melted queso de bola on the bottom half of the pan francés. The hot fat will keep melting the cheese into the bread. Top with a tangle of the bright pink cebollas encurtidas and a few slices of tomato and avocado if you are using them. Close the torta and press it down with your palm so the fat and the cheese marry the bread. Serve immediately with the salsa de habanero on the side. Each bite should crack at the edge of the skin, give to the soft fat, hit the salty cheese, and finish with the sting of habanero and citrus. Así se hace y punto.

Chef Tips

• •Pork belly with the skin on is non-negotiable. Without the skin you cannot make castacán, you can only make fried pork. Ask your butcher. If your supermarket does not carry it, find a Mexican or Asian carnicería.
• •Naranja agria is the soul of Yucatecan cooking. If you can find it at a Mexican or Caribbean mercado, buy several and freeze the juice in ice cube trays. The mixed orange-lime-vinegar substitute works in a pinch but it is a compromise. Tell yourself that and keep looking for the real thing.
• •Queso de bola comes in a red wax ball. Look for the Dutch Edam at any decent cheese counter or in the Latin section of a larger market. Do not substitute Monterey Jack or cheddar. The whole point of this torta is the specific way queso de bola softens into the bread without turning into a grease puddle.
• •If you cannot find pan francés, a small French baguette or a Cuban-style roll will work. What you cannot use is a soft hamburger bun or a brioche. The bread needs a crust that crackles and a crumb that absorbs the fat without disintegrating.

Advance Preparation

• •The pork belly can be simmered one day ahead and refrigerated overnight. The skin actually fries crisper after a cold rest, so this is the preferred order in Mérida.
• •The cebollas encurtidas can be made up to four days ahead and improve as they sit. The salsa de habanero is best the day it is made, but it will keep refrigerated for two days with some loss of brightness.
• •Build and serve the torta immediately. The cheese has to be hot and the bread has to be just-toasted. A torta that sits on the counter for ten minutes is a sad torta.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 325g)