This recipe is so easy to make and the star of the show is the oven. Cook up this glorious porchetta recipe for your next Italian feast. This is a simplified version is flavoured with fragrant fennel seeds, garlic, lemon and wine was passed to us from friends in the area who gleaned it from a local chef in Assisi.
It takes very little time to prepare and always receives very positive comments when we serve to friends and family. A brilliant dish served hot as a Sunday roast and also works well as a cold cut with salads. We find that leaving it in the fridge overnight really intensifies the flavours.
Although porchetta can be found throughout Italy (most notably in Lazio), it originated in the central region of Umbria. A hefty fennel flavouring sets it apart from other regional porchettas, with Umbrians basing the stuffing on the plentiful wild fennel that grows there. In Lazio, rosemary tends to be the most prominent flavouring. When selecting the pork at the supermarket try and find a nice piece that has already been rolled and tied. It will make the entire process a lot easier for you. Peel the garlic cloves and place in a pestle and mortar. Add the herbs, Lemon Zest, spices, salt, pepper and white wine and grind to a rough paste. Place the pork loin skin-side down and thickly smear the herb paste across the exposed side. Trim the loin down to size so it rolls up neatly. Roll up tightly, tie up with butcher's string and leave uncovered in the fridge overnight. This will dry out the skin, giving a crispier crackling Before roasting, score the skin diagonally and push the bacon lardons onto the seams you have created. Preheat the oven to 180°C/gas mark 4 Place the pork into the centre of the oven. Roast for 60 - 90 minutes depending on the size of your joint. Check at intervals, and baste as necessary Cover with foil and leave to rest for 30 minutes before carving. Slice and serve and enjoy Resting the meat before serving is very important to this dish.Porchetta
Ingredients
Instructions
Notes
Accompaniments
If you want the full Italian Fest to accompany this dish try the following side dishes.Green Beans | From the Breadbasket of Italy | and the fabulously tasty Grilled Aubergine | Deliciously Fresh and Simple |
Wine Matching
Porchetta is a very highly flavoured dish due to the herbs and spices used in the stuffing. We chose a Christophe et Fils Chablis 2018. It’s a classic with most fish dishes, but it has enough body and strength to stand up to a little bit of chicken tandoori if you have a taste for it. it suits the Porchetta perfectly. Available from Naked Wines.
2 Comments
Maddie Kruger
8th May 2019 at 5:36 pmMarc cooked us the Porchetta (my first foray with Pork)! I was a bit dubious but said I would give it a try. And am so glad I did! It was delicious and the crackling was amazing (also a first!!). Will definitely try and cook it myself. I’m now a convert to Pork.
Marc Spendlove-Kruger
9th May 2019 at 9:34 amSo glad you enjoyed it – I felt it brought back memories of our holidays in Italy