Spicy Maple Keto Pork Belly Bites

Where can you buy pork belly?

Sourcing different food and meat ingredients to complete your latest keto recipe can be interesting.

Finding a place pork belly is sold takes some creativity.

Costco

First off, we have found pork belly at Costco. We have found that Costco is an excellent source for harder to find, yet also higher quality cuts of meats.

Local meat shops

Do a search for local meat shops and give them call to see if they have pork belly in stock. Some carry it, while others might have to order it in.

Local grocery stores

Similar to the local meat shops, we have see chain grocery stores carry pork belly. Many times, this pork belly has been prepared with seasoning, but not always. If you don’t see it in the meat case, ask behind the counter. There are also times that some stores can order it in for you.

Online meat shops

There are numerous places online that sell pork belly. Doing a search for “order pork belly online” will give you numerous options. We have had great success ordering from Snake River Farms but I should be clear, that SRF sells a premium pork that is 5 – 7x the cost of sourcing locally. With that said, they are amazing high quality cuts.

What's the difference between pork belly and bacon?

Pork belly and bacon both come from the same region of the hog.

In fact, bacon comes from pork belly, but pork belly is not bacon. The main difference between pork belly and bacon is that bacon is smoked or cured while pork belly is uncured and not smoked – it is fresh.

Spicy seasoning

To achieve the spicy flavor of this rich pork belly dish, we use 6 spices:

• chili powder
• paprika
• cayenne pepper
• black pepper
• salt
• garlic powder

If you wish to increase the level of heat, just add more chili powder or cayenne pepper.

Sugar free maple syrup

To offset the spicy flavor, we toss our final cooked keto pork belly bites in a couple tablespoons of sugar-free maple syrup.

There are lots of keto approved maple syrups available to purchase. You may also find some at your grocery store. Here are some of my favorites.

• ChocZero Maple Syrup
• Lakanto Maple Syrup
• Pyure Maple Syrup

Alternative coatings or additions could be:

• BBQ sauce
• Soy sauce
• Fish sauce

How to cook pork bell in the air fryer?

For the most crispy pork belly bites, I recommend frying these keto appetizers in the air fryer.

The benefit of using an air fryer is that it keeps your pork bites juicy in the inside but gets they crispy on the outside. Plus they don’t take as long to cook and clean up is easier too.

How to cook pork belly strips & chunks in the oven?

If you don’t own an air fryer, you can bake these keto pork belly bites in the oven!

I recommend placing your pork belly chunks on top of a wire rack that sits on top of a baking tray. This will allow the fat to drop down as the pork belly bakes and allows for air to reach underneath the bites for even cooking.

Make sure you line your baking tray with aluminum foil for easy clean up. Then bake in a 400 degree oven for 15-20 minutes. Of course, you may need to adjust the cooking time depending on the thickness of your pork belly.