The night before, rinse the beans to get any loose skins off. Put them in a pot and cover with water about two inches higher than the top of the beans. Add 1 teaspoon salt to the water and bring it all to a boil.

Let it boil for about 5 minutes, then turn off heat and cover.

In the morning, turn the heat back on beans and simmer for two hours, adding water as needed.

Add the remaining ingredients to the pot and bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low.

Simmer, uncovered, for three to four hours, adding water as needed.

While the soup simmers, cut the pork belly into small pieces.

Heat 2 or 3 Tablespoons of olive oil in a heavy skillet, then add the pork belly and cook until it's crisp. Cook it low and slow. The idea is to render the fat.

Scoop out most of the pork belly, then add a ladle of the soup broth to the skillet to deglaze the pan.

Pour it all back into the soup pot. 

About 1 hour before serving, put about 1/3 of the pork belly into the soup. Save the rest to garnish.

Serve hot with warm bread or toast.