Italian roast pork and salsa verde
 
Porchetta is an Italian classic, you will always find it in an Italian food market. The combination of fennel and garlic with slow roasted pork is to die for! I have added a salsa verde recipe to this as once you have made it fresh you will be eating it with everything you can lay your hands on.
 
Ingredients Serves 6
 
For the salsa Verde
1 clove of garlic
2 anchovies
1 tbsp of capers
2 tbsp of red wine vinegar
1 tsp of dijon mustard
1 handful of fresh mint leaves
1 handful of flat leaf parsley
100ml Extra virgin olive
 
Here’s how:
 
Place all the salsa verde ingredients into a blender and mix together to create the sauce.
Taste the salsa and adjust with salt, pepper and vinegar to get a good balance of flavour. This sauce will keep in the fridge for 3-4 days and makes an amazing quick pasta sauce for those quick, easy dinnertime solutions.
 
Porchetta
 
1-2kg belly pork bones and rolls
3 tbsp olive oil
3 tsp Salt
1 tbsp Freshly milled black pepper
3 tbsp chopped rosemary
2 garlic cloves
2 tbsp fennel seeds
3 tbsp olive oil
 
Here’s how:
 
Unroll the belly pork and using a sharp knife score the external fat approx 1cm deep all along the skin.
Drizzle with olive oil on both sides and season with 1 tsp salt, pepper, garlic, chopped rosemary and fennel seed.
Roll the pork back up and tie together before placing in a roasting tray.
Add two chopped onions to the roasting tray
Season the pork with the remaining salt and pour in 1 pint of water.
Cook the pork for 1 hour at 180c and then 2 more hours at 140c.
When the pork is cooked remove from the oven and leave to rest for 20 minutes before carving. This dish makes a great leftover meal the next day as well!
 
Porchetta is a versatile pork meat that pairs best with medium-bodied but fruity red wines such as Côtes du Rhône, Chianti, Barbera, Pinot Noir and Zinfandel. Low tannin, high acidity and low oak are a must for Porchetta and red wine pairings. Porchetta is just as delicious with white wines, such as, Riesling, Trebbiano, Verdicchio, Soave and Greco di Tufo. Stick to lighter white wines, as a heavier oaked Chardonnay or aromatic Gewürztraminer will crush the mild taste of the pork. As Porchetta is heavily salted, I prefer lighter white wines with lots of acidity as they keep me refreshed.
 
Recipes by Peter Sidwell