Southern BBQ Pork Cracklins Recipe

In the deep South, pork products are deeply loved. From the vinegar-sauced pulled pork BBQ of the Carolinas to Louisiana's boudin balls (pork and rice sausage wrapped around cheese and deep-fried), there are countless ways that the favorite meat is turned into good eats. While cracklins might not be as mainstream as their cousin, pork rinds, for many, these little nuggets of fried pork are as good as it gets.

Made with skin-on pork belly, cracklins are a delightful mix of textures. The pork skin gets nice, light, and crisp while the attached meat and fat fry up into something that resembles a thick bacon. To finish the cracklins, you will toss them in a Southern-style BBQ rub, adding not just salt but layers of flavor from brown sugar, paprika, cayenne, cinnamon, and other spices.

Perhaps best of all, you don't even need any fat or oil to fry these cracklins. All you have to do is cube up the pork belly and render out the lard over low heat. Once the fat is rendered, you bring it up to frying temperature for your cracklins. And, when you're done, you can store that leftover lard for future frying or baking.

For this recipe you will need pork belly with skin, brown sugar, salt, paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, thyme, cayenne pepper, cinnamon, and allspice. Once you have gathered those ingredients, you are ready to start cooking.

Place a large, heavy-bottomed pot over low heat and add the pork belly.

Allow the pork belly to cook, stirring occasionally, for around 90 minutes, or until the pork is golden and most of the fat has rendered out.

While the pork is rendering, mix together the sugar, salt, and spices in a small bowl.

Scoop the pork belly pieces out of the pot.

Turn the heat to high and bring the rendered fat to 375 F. If you haven't rendered enough fat for frying, you can add a bit of neutral oil.

Return the pork to the oil and fry for around 5 minutes, or until the skin pieces have puffed up nicely.

Scoop the cracklins out of the pot and onto a plate lined with paper towels to absorb the excess oil.

Transfer the cracklins to a paper bag or a mixing bowl, pour over the seasoning, and shake or toss to coat well. Serve immediately.

The pantheon of fried pork skin products can be perplexing to navigate. There are so many names for what are often similar products. What we in the U.S. know as pork rinds are called scratchings in the U.K. South of the border, these same snacks may be known as chicharrones, but in other parts of the world, that same name can refer to very different foods, such as shredded pork. In the American south, both pork rinds and pork cracklins are common terms and common foods, but what exactly separates them?

The difference between pork rinds and cracklins is that pork rinds are made exclusively from the skin of the pig while cracklins also include some of the meat and fat. Both are deep fried, but the resulting products have different textures. Being just skin, pork rinds puff up and turn crisp. Cracklins, on the other hand, have a meatier texture. Cracklins still have the crispy, puffed skin of the pork rind, but the fat and meat attached gives them a bit more chew.

When it comes to fried pork skin, it is tough to go wrong with the seasoning. Just about anything you sprinkle over that crispy skin is going to taste magnificent. You could go with something simple like salt and pepper, or mimic one of the many flavors you might see at the grocery store, such as BBQ (as in this recipe), nacho cheese, or salt and vinegar. These days, there are even birthday cake and dill pickle pork rinds on the market.

In this recipe, we have gone with a homemade, southern-style BBQ rub, but there's no reason you couldn't substitute your own favorite blend or store-bought rub. This zesty rib rub would add a little smoky chipotle and sweet orange aroma to the mix. Or, you could take the cracklins back to their roots with a classic Cajun spice mix. For a taste of even farther south, homemade taco seasoning would also be excellent. Just about whatever mix of flavors you decide to toss on these savory fried pork bits is sure to taste great.