How to make porchetta – recipe | Italian food and drink

HThe Italian-style roast is traditionally prepared with a whole suckling pig stuffed with herbs and slowly roasted until tender and juicy with a crispy, browned skin. Luckily, few of us have the opportunity to replicate this at home or we would never find time to do anything else, but a smaller cut is dangerously doable.

preparation 25 mins
Relax 8 hrs+
Cook 4 hours 30 minutes
serves 8-10

1 x square piece of boneless pork belly and 1 x piece of pork loin About the right size to be rolled up inside, skin stays on – how much each piece weighs depends on the shape, but aim for a total weight of around 3½-4kg
1 tbsp fennel seeds
1 tsp dried chilli flakes (Optional)
50 grams of garlic (about 10 cloves)
30 g sea salt flakes
2 tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary or thyme leaves
1 tbsp lard or olive oilat room temperature
200 ml white wine (Optional)

1 Choose your meat wisely

Although you can make porchetta from a single piece of boneless pork belly or shoulder, a combination of fatty belly and lean, tender sirloin—with the skin on the belly for maximum crispiness—offers the best of both worlds. You’ll probably need to go to a butcher to make sure you’re getting the right-shape pieces.

2 A note on portion control

Because the belly slice must be big enough to roll around the loin, it’s difficult to cook porchetta in small batches. If this is a problem, after reassembling, cut them in half and freeze a slice to cook at a later time. Leftovers also make really excellent sandwiches.

3 Grind spices and garlic

Heat the fennel seeds and chilli flakes, if using, in a dry skillet until fragrant with toasting, then grind to a powder.

Peel and also crush the garlic cloves; I add them to the mortar along with the spices, but you can use a knife or garlic press if you prefer.

4 Add the herbs and season

Add the salt and chopped herbs (I prefer rosemary here, but you could also consider thyme, sage, wild fennel, or even flat-leaf parsley) to the spices and garlic…

…then stir in the softened lard or oil until a paste is formed.

If not using chilli, add black pepper very liberally.

5 Rub the paste into the meat

Unroll the pork belly and place skin-side down on a clean surface.

Score the meat all over with a sharp knife, being careful not to cut all the way through, then rub the spice paste into the meat with your hands.

(Tip: If your hands still smell like garlic after washing, rub them with a sliced ​​lemon.)

6 rolls and tie

Place the sirloin on top of one end of the belly, with its longer side parallel to the shorter side of the belly, and then roll the belly tightly around it until it’s trapped.

Secure it about 2 inches apart, preferably with butcher’s twine, although regular kitchen twine will work as well.

7 Refrigerate to dehydrate

Place in a roasting pan and leave uncovered in the fridge for at least 8 hours to dehydrate the skin and encourage crispy crackling. Take out of the fridge an hour before cooking and pat the skin dry with paper towels.

8 roast porchetta …

Preheat the oven to 180°C (160°C fan oven)/350°F/Gas 4. If you have a rack for your roasting pan, place the meat on it before placing the pan in the oven. In any case, roast for four hours, then turn the oven up as high as possible and bake for another 30 minutes or until the crust is golden brown (but keep an eye on it so it doesn’t burn). .

9 … then rest for half an hour

Remove from the oven and let rest uncovered for 30 minutes. If you want a gravy, lift the meat and grate out of the pan, skim the fat from the pan juices, then add the wine, place the pan over medium-high heat and stir until reduced to your liking . Season to taste. Cut the meat into slices and serve, preferably in soft rolls.