How to Make Sio Bak Using Philips Airfryer

Fans of Philips Airfryer, hands up! A few months back, Shiberty and I had a Philips Airfryer cooking challenge at Cookyn Inc. We were tasked to lead 4 teams each comprising a total of 16 participants, to cook 4 sets of recipes given to them. We play as a moderator role to help our respective teams to win the cooking challenge.

Philips air fryer was really easy to use, because even the BFF who doesn’t cook at all does it really well. Towards the end, each team came up with a very beautiful signage to explain their dishes. Of course, I not only walk around to help out in the preparation, I also help to plate up of final dishes.

I am very happy to see how each team work hard and distribute the duties well. They brainstorm for ideas and cook together like friends even though some of them only got to know each other that day. ALL OF US HAD FUN! For more details of Philips Airfryer, click here.

Now comes the fun part! Thanks to Philips, I got a new Philips Avance Collection Airfryer XL with Rapid Air technology to cook my meals. Don’t think that they can only fry chicken wings please, they also can bake leh! I have been thinking of creative ways on how to make use of the machine. Then an idea struck me – let’s make SIO BAK (crispy pork belly)!

To be honest, this is my first try at making sio bak. I have been wanting to try it for the longest time and with the Philips Airfryer, it does look easier to accomplish. Of course, I am still an amateur in this but I really spend a lot of time researching on the ways people make sio bak.

Making sio bak is really a test of patience. Sometimes, I got impatient waiting for my cakes to be baked. Now, I have to wait close to a day to finally eat my sio bak. Because it is such a big project, I was so scared that any single mistake will ruin it. From blanching to air drying to rubbing the spice mix to air frying it, I really take great care when handling each step. Not forgetting the photography part which is a test of skills too.

When the sio bak finally entered my airfryer, I literally held my breath and prayed for the best! HAHA! No, I am not exaggerating. It was the longest 1 hour which I have waited and you can’t wait to put that crispy skin into your mouth immediately. Don’t worry, I got rid of the overly charred parts! 🙂

I wished I got a bigger piece of meat from the market (better visual impact) but it was a spur of the moment to make sio bak so I can only make do with the long strips of pork belly from supermarket. I am so happy that Philips Airfryer has recently introduced a XL version. Larger cooking capacity means more great tasting meals (it has 1.2kg capacity which can feed up to 5 people)! Its unique Rapid Air technology enables you to fry with air food crunchy on the outside and tender on the inside. The skin bubbled well and when we cut it, it has a lovely crisp and a lightly charred flavour. My grandpa and aunties bit onto the skin with that crackling sound and it was such a joy to hear!

Sio Bak

Servings: 4

Author: Maureen

How to create crispy (or crackling) pork belly using Philips Airfryer?

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Ingredients

• 800 g of pork belly
• Seasonings
• 1 tsp fine sea salt
• 1 tsp garlic salt
• 2 tsp five-spice powder
• 1 cube fermented beancurd lower garlic salt
• 1 tsp rosemary
• 1 tsp white pepper
• 1 tsp sugar
• Half a fresh lemon

Apple sauce

• 6 Granny Smith Apples – Peeled Cored and Sliced
• 2/3 cup Castor Sugar
• 100 ml apple cider vinegar
• Juice of ½ Lemon

Instructions

1. Wash the belly pork and cut lines on the meat portion
2. Cook the pork belly thoroughly in water.
3. Remove from water and Pat dry any excess water from the pork belly.
4. Let it air-dry in the open for 3 hours. Pluck excess hair if any.
5. Score the skin with a knife and pricked as many holes using a fork. The more holes the better (for crispier skin).
6. Massage the dry rub into the meat area.
7. Rub some lemon juice on the skin and followed by salt .
8. Preheat the air-fryer for 10 mins at 160 degree celsius. Place the pork belly skin facing up into the airfryer.
9. Air-fry for 160 degree celsius for 30 mins. Remove, poke more holes and brush some rice wine vinegar on the skin. Air-fry for another 180 degree celsius for 30 mins.

To make the apple sauce

1. Using low heat, cook sugar and vinegar into a saucepan until the sugar is dissolved. Add the apples and cook until tender. Puree then add lemon and set aside to cool.

Airfryer’s unique Rapid Air technology enables you to fry, bake, roast, and grill the tastiest snacks and meals with up to 80% less fat than a conventional fryer. The digital touch screen allows you to control the time and temperature of your cooking in an easier and more precise way.

Each Philips Airfryer comes with a recipe book created by culinary experts that gives inspiration for a variety of low-fat fried food that you can cook in the Airfryer. It also introduces you to recipes that showcase the versatility of the appliance so that you can grill, bake and even roast food healthier, faster and more conveniently. You can view the youtube video here.

If you have an existing Airfryers, please share your feedback on the Philips.com.sg website. To review the Philips Avance XL Airfryer, click here. To review the Philips Viva Collectiion Airfryer, click here.