PORCHETTA
SLOW COOKED PORCHETTA IN MILK, SAGE POLENTA, WINTER GREENS, SALSA VERDE
This is a wonderful feasting dish to serve to family and friends - perfect as a really special Sunday lunch. At first glance it may look complicated but each step is very straightforward, it is worth taking the time to make sure each layer you roll is secure, a little nod to butchery skills, which is such a rewarding process. A classic Italian dish, porchetta should be mouthwateringly succulent, with deliciously tempting crisped skin. It is a recipe that delivers everything you could want from wintry comfort food when served with wet polenta and greens, but it works equally well in the summer with a warm lentil salad. The salsa really lifts the dish whatever season you serve it in. We use pork from Parsonage Farm and local milk that carries the ‘pasture promise’ guarantee; using really good quality ingredients will make all the difference to the taste of this dish. Note: do not worry about the curdled look of the milk after the cooking process, this is absolutely as it should be and when that milk is whisked into the polenta the flavours will add another dimension to the dish.
makes 8 main course portions
Ingredients
For the pork
1 small pork belly, skin off & kept separate for crackling
1 large pork tenderloin/fillet
80 g sliced prosciutto
2 onions, peeled & studded with whole cloves
2 carrots, chopped
2 sticks of celery, chopped
1 bulb of garlic, cut in half
700 g winter greens (Cavolo nero, Rapini or turnip tops, Kale, January King cabbage)
2 lemons, juiced
Salt & pepper
Rapeseed oil
4 l whole milk
100 g sage
Butcher's string
For the polenta
50 g sage
200 g fast cooking polenta (25g per person)
1 onion, diced
300 g unsalted butter, diced
200 g parmesan cheese, grated
For the salsa verde
100 g flat leaf parsley, picked & chopped
100 g garden mint, picked & chopped
50 g oregano, picked & chopped
50 g liliput capers
2 banana shallots, peeled & chopped
500 ml extra virgin olive oil
Salt & pepper to taste
Method
For the pork
Salt the pork skin and leave to cure over night or for 8 hours.
Rinse the salt off, pat dry with kitchen towel and place on a baking tray.
Pre-heat oven to 170ºC.
Lay the Prosciutto out on to a clean work surface with each slice slightly overlapping.
Place the pork tenderloin on to the centre of the prosciutto. Then from one end start to tightly wrap the prosciutto around the tenderloin.
Lay the pork belly down length-ways on to a clean work surface. Place the wrapped tenderloin at the base of one end and carefully wrap the belly around the tenderloin.
Now start to tie the pork belly with butcher’s string. Make sure to tie nice and tight all the way along the pork leaving a 1 cm gap between each knot.
Place a deep casserole dish onto the stove top over a high heat.
Pour 100 ml of oil into the dish. Season the pork with salt & pepper then carefully place into the dish and cool the meat on all sides.
Once coloured, remove the pork from the dish and set to one side. In the same dish then sauté the carrots celery, garlic until slightly coloured.
Place the pork back into the dish on top of the vegetables, then add the studded onion, 100 g of sage and all of the milk. Cover with a lid, place in the oven and cook for approximately 3 hours or until soft.
Remove the pork from the pan and wrap in tin foil to rest. Strain the milk through a fine sieve and set to one side.
Turn oven up to 180ºC.
Place the pork skin into the oven and cook until golden brown and crisp. When ready carefully remove from the tray and place on kitchen towel to drain any excess fat.
For the polenta
In a large heavy bottom pan, melt 150 g butter, chop the remaining sage and cook the diced onion for 5 minutes or until soft.
Then add 2 litres of the milk and bring to the boil. Slowly pour in the polenta, whisking continuously to avoid lumpy consistency.
Whisk in the parmesan, juice of 1 lemon and season to taste.
In another large heavy bottomed pan, melt the remaining butter, add the greens, cover with a lid and steam for few minutes or until soft. Finish with lemon juice and season to taste.
For the salsa verde
Place all of the salsa ingredients into a food processor and blitz until smooth.
