Method

• Set the oven at 220C Finely chop the herbs or lightly crush the bayleaves and crush them with the sea salt and peppercorns using a pestle and mortar
• When you have a sand-like mixture, pour in three tablespoons of the olive oil to make a paste
• Put the meat in a roasting tin and massage the herb paste into its skin and cut edges
• Roast for 20 minutes, then reduce the temperature to 170C and continue to roast for 25 minutes per 500g
• While the pork is roasting, prepare the remainder of the dinner such as potatoes, cabbage etc
• When the pork is ready, remove it from the oven and let it rest in a warm place, lightly covered with foil (a tight covering will make the crackling soften)
• Put the roasting tin over a moderate heat, add another ½ to 1 cup water or stock and boil the juices until reduced to about 200ml or so
• They won’t thicken, but you just want to concentrate the flavour a little
• Adjust the seasoning
• Serve the pork in thin slices, together with chunks of its crackling and the pan juices