This recipe is the ultimate showstopper of a traditional pork roast. The meat should stay tender and juicy and the crackling perfect and crunchy. It requires a bit of effort but it’s sure to be well worth it.
Apricot glazed porchetta with balsamic roasted new potatoes and apple sauce
Ingredients
Pork Rub: 1 cup rock salt ½ cup sugar a small handful sage 2 tablespoons fennel seeds 2 cloves
Porchetta: 3 – 3,5kg pork belly, skin on, deboned 1 – 1,2kg pork fillet, cleaned 1 bulb garlic, cloves crushed a small handful rosemary ½ cup olive oil
Glaze: 1 cup apricot jam 1 tablespoon dijon mustard 1 lemon, juiced and zested
Balsamic Roasted New Potatoes: 500g baby new potatoes, skin on ½ cup olive oil salt, to taste pepper, to taste a small handful rosemary, picked and chopped 1/3 cup balsamic vinegar
Apple Sauce: 80g butter 4 apples, cored, peeled and chopped 4pears, cored, peeled and chopped a small handful sage 1 lemon, zested salt, to taste honey, to taste
Method For the pork rub1 Using a food processor, combine all ingredients and blend until well combined.
For the porchetta
1 Put belly skin side down, arrange fillet in centre. Roll belly around fillet so the short ends of the belly meet. If any of the belly or fillet overhangs, trim meat. Unroll, set fillet aside.
2 Rub meat with pork rub and allow to cure overnight.
3 Once meat has cured overnight, remove from the fridge and allow to come to room temperature.
4 Place pork belly skin side up and score skin using a small knife in a diagonal fashion.
5 In the meantime, preheat oven to 250C.
6 Placing the belly skin side down, rearrange the porchetta by placing the fillet back in the centre of the belly and roll belly around fillet. Tie crosswise using kitchen string, leaving 2cm intervals between the string.
7 To make the glaze, combine apricot jam, dijon mustard, and the juice and zest of a lemon. Using a brush, baste the porchetta until well covered
8 Place porchetta on a wire rack in a roasting tin and place in the oven at 250C for 40 minutes, turning once.
9 After 40 minutes, reduce oven temperature to 160C and roast for a further 1 ½ – 2 hours, turning and glazing periodically.
10 Remove from oven and allow to rest for 30 minutes before slicing. Ba.ste with remaining glaze 1
1 Remove kitchen string and slice into 2cm rounds.
For the balsamic roasted new potatoes
1 Preheat oven to 180C.
2 Place new potatoes in a large roasting pan and drizzle generously with olive oil and add rosemary. Season with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.
3 Roast in the oven for 25 – 35 minutes or until potatoes are tender
4 Remove from oven and add balsamic vinegar and place back in the oven for a further 7 -8 minutes.
5 Remove from the oven, season with salt and pepper, if needed.
For the apple sauce
1 In a saucepan, melt butter and add apples, pears and lemon zest.
2 Allow to cook down on a low temperature until apples and pears have cooked to a soft texture.
3 Season with a pinch of salt and honey to taste.
4 Serve alongside porchetta,
Images supplied by: Honestly YUM[