Next,use a knife with a short,sharp blade,such as a Stanley knife,to score the skin at one-centimetre intervals. Cut through the rind without cutting into the meat,which could leak juices that stop the skin from crisping. And make sure you cut right to the edges – basically,you’re creating irrigation channels to enable the rendered fat to run off.

Refrigerate the pork,uncovered,for 24 hours. If you just cursed out loud because you don’t have that sort of time,don’t worry;even an hour or two will help dry out the skin and create more crunch.

Remove from the refrigerator and let the pork come to room temperature.

Heat the oven to 220C fan-forced (240C conventional) and line a roasting pan with baking paper. Rub the pork all over with olive oil,then rub with a goodly amount (up to 1 tablespoon) of sea salt,working it into the cuts.

Roast the pork for 30 minutes to kick-start the crackling,then turn the temperature down to 170C fan-forced (190C conventional). Roast for 40 minutes per kilogram,or until a meat thermometer inserted into the middle of the thickest part of the meat reads 65C,rotating the pan once or twice to help the pork cook evenly.

Bring the temperature up to 220C fan-forced (240C conventional) again,and give the pork a good blast for 10 minutes. The crackling should be crisp,golden and blistered.

Rest the roast for 10 minutes under a loose sheet of foil. To serve,cut right through the crackling (the scores make it super-easy),which should make so much noise,everyone at the table will stop talking immediately.