Crackling is the crisp, puffed skin of roast pork, bacon, or ham, served as a crunchy accompaniment to the meat. Achieving it requires dry skin, scoring, generous salt, and fierce initial heat to blister and crisp the fat layer before roasting continues more gently. The result shatters between the teeth, rich with rendered pork flavour. It is beloved in British roast dinners and Chinese siu yuk alike. High in fat and salt, it is unapologetically indulgent, and perfect crackling remains a point of pride for roast cooks, the audible test of a job well done.