Chinese pork, drunken potatoes and nashi pear sauce

Method

1. Pat the pork dry all over with kitchen paper, then put in a roasting dish skin side down and rub the flesh with the pepper, five-spice, garlic powder, sugar and a pinch of salt. Flip it so it’s skin-side up, wipe the skin dry again, then use a skewer or toothpick to poke little holes all over the top of it, trying not to pierce all the way through to the flesh (this helps the skin render its fat and turn extra crisp). The more holes you poke, the crisper it’ll be! Pour the 2 tbsp of shaoxing wine into the tray, being careful not to splash any on the skin, then rub the skin with the salt flakes. Put the tray in the fridge, uncovered, overnight.
2. The next day, pat the skin dry again with kitchen paper – the salt should have drawn out some moisture; it’s important to remove this. Leave the
   pork out to come to room temperature while you heat the oven to 220°C fan/gas 9.
3. Roast the pork in the oven for 30 minutes, then turn the heat down to 160°C fan/gas 4. Turn the tray 180 degrees to ensure the pork cooks evenly, then cook for an hour longer.
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4. Meanwhile, peel the potatoes and cut into 5mm slices, then put them in another roasting tin and toss with the oil, salt and garlic before pouring over the 120ml shaoxing wine. Arrange the top slices of potato in a neat flat layer, then put the roasting tin in the oven when the pork has 45 minutes left.
5. To make the nashi pear sauce, peel and core the pears, then cut into cubes (about 2cm). Put them in a medium saucepan with  the rest of the sauce ingredients and a pinch of salt. Bring to the boil, lower the heat and simmer very gently for 25 minutes. Discard the star anise, then use a stick blender to whizz it all together – you still want some texture, so stop when roughly half the pears are puréed.
6. Take the pork and potatoes out of the oven and heat the grill to medium-high. Put the pork under the grill (on a not-too-high shelf) and cook until the skin puffs up – keep an eye on it as it’ll start to burn soon after this happens. Leave the pork and potatoes to rest for 15 minutes before slicing the pork and serving with the pear sauce.