Yes, we keep pork belly, and we cut it the way you plan to cook it: a whole slab for roasting, thick strips for braising, or one inch cubes for the smoker. If you landed here from a pork belly near me search because the grocery store only sells the cured, sliced version in a package, that is the short answer. Pork belly is bacon before anybody cures it, and it is one of the most forgiving things you can put in an oven once you understand what those layers are doing.
What Makes One Pork Belly Better Than Another
A belly is built in bands. Skin on top, a fat cap under it, then lean and fat alternating down through the cut like a deck of cards. The fat bastes the lean from the inside as it renders, which is why a belly forgives a long cook that would turn a loin into sawdust, and the skin blisters into crackling if you give it dry heat at the end.
Three things separate a good slab from a mediocre one. Even thickness matters most, because a belly that runs an inch and a half at one end and half an inch at the other cooks unevenly no matter what you do. Ratio is next: you want visible lean bands, not a wall of fat with a stripe through it. And fresh fat is firm and white, never yellow, never soft to the touch. That last one is a freshness tell across the whole case.
Skin on or off is a real decision. Skin on is what you want for roasting, for porchetta, for anything where crackling is the point. Skin off is easier for braising and cubes, and it takes a rub better. We pull it either way, so tell us what you are making.
How to Buy Pork Belly at the Counter
Tell us the dish. Roast, braise, burnt ends and homemade bacon are four different asks, and the dish settles thickness, skin and portion size faster than any other question.
Say slab or portioned. A whole slab keeps best and leaves you the most options at home. Strips and cubes save you the knife work. Neither costs extra, and custom butcher cuts covers the rest of what we will do at the block.
Say how many people. Pork belly renders hard, and it is rich enough that nobody eats a lot of it. Half a pound raw per person makes a generous main. A quarter pound per person is plenty when it is one thing among several on the table.
Call ahead for quantity. A couple of pounds is usually sitting right there. Ten or fifteen pounds for a party wants a day or two of notice.
At home, keep it in the coldest part of the fridge and cook it inside three or four days, or wrap it well and freeze it. Our notes on storing meat properly cover the wrapping.
Three Ways We Cook Pork Belly
Slow roast, for crackling
Score the skin in lines a finger width apart, through the skin and fat cap but not into the meat. Salt the skin heavily and leave the slab uncovered in the fridge overnight, because dry skin crackles and damp skin does not. Roast at 300°F for two and a half to three hours until the meat is tender, then take the oven to 450°F for fifteen or twenty minutes and watch it. The skin will blister and pop. Rest it fifteen minutes before you cut it.
Braise, for something spoonable
Cut it into two inch pieces, brown them hard and in batches, then simmer covered at 300°F with liquid partway up the meat rather than over it. Two hours, give or take. This is the road to pork belly over rice, to bao, to anything where you want the fat gone soft rather than crisp. Soy, ginger, star anise and a little sugar is the classic pairing, and the reasoning behind seasoning it early is in five secrets to perfectly seasoned meat.
Burnt ends, on the smoker
One inch cubes, rubbed, smoked at 250°F for two to two and a half hours, then panned with butter and sauce, covered, and given another hour until they are tender enough to fall apart under a fork. They finish in a fraction of the time a brisket takes, which makes them the easiest introduction to a smoker we know, and they sit alongside the long cooks in our pit master notes.
What does not work is treating a belly like a chop. No version of this cut wants eight minutes over high heat.
Pork Belly, Bacon and Pancetta Are the Same Cut
This one comes up at the counter every week. Bacon is pork belly cured and then smoked. Pancetta is pork belly cured and not smoked, usually rolled. Both start as the slab in the case. Guanciale is the odd one out: it comes from the jowl, not the belly. We keep all three, plus slab bacon you can cut to your own thickness. If you want to cure your own, buy the belly and start there.
The same logic runs the other direction with beef, which we wrote up in the beef bacon guide. Building a board rather than dinner? The art of charcuterie covers where the cured versions earn their place.
Where to Buy Pork Belly in Atlanta
Your neighborhood butcher shop should be an easier answer than a drive across town. We are at 2030 Main Street NW in Riverside, open Mon–Fri 11am–7pm, Sat 10am–7pm, Sun 10am–5pm, and the belly is cut to order at the counter like everything else behind the glass.
You can order online for pickup and put the thickness, the skin and the portion size in the notes. Feeding a crowd instead? Our catering menu runs off the same counter. For a large quantity or a question about what came in this week, get in touch. There is more from behind the counter on the butcher blog.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Frazie’s sell pork belly?
Yes. We keep pork belly at the counter, sold by the pound and cut to order: whole slab, thick strips or cubes, skin on or skin off. Call ahead if you need more than a few pounds.
What is the difference between pork belly and bacon?
They are the same cut at different stages. Bacon is pork belly that has been cured and smoked, then sliced. Pork belly is that slab before any of it happens, which is why you can roast it, braise it or cure it yourself.
How do you get pork belly skin crispy?
Dry skin crackles and damp skin steams. Score the skin, salt it heavily, and leave the slab uncovered in the fridge overnight. Roast low until the meat is tender, then finish at 450°F for fifteen to twenty minutes.
How much pork belly do I need per person?
Half a pound raw per person as a main, or a quarter pound if it is one dish among several. It renders hard and eats rich, so people take less than they expect to.