I was thrilled with the results for Mock Porchetta from the Zuni Café cookbook.  The leftovers were fabulous!! A real porchetta is a seasoned, roasted whole pig—a daunting project that I am unwilling to undertake, probably ever, but this version is made with a very manageable and inexpensive 2 ½# shoulder butt roast.  The secret lies in seasoning the roast 2 or 3 days ahead of time and slow roasting the day of the party, leaving you and me plenty of time to have a glass of champagne.   I followed the recipe almost exactly.  The results were delightful—everyone raved about it and asked for the recipe, a sure sign of success.

Mock Porchetta

Zuni Café Cookbook

4-6 servings

One 2 ½# to 3# boneless pork shoulder butt roast

Salt

1Tbsp caper, rinsed, pressed dry and barely chopped

1tsp. lemon zest

3 garlic cloves, coarsely chopped

About 12 fresh sage leaves, chopped (about 1 ½ tsp.)

2 tsp. rosemary leaves, chopped

2 tsp. fennel seeds, barely crushed (I subbed 2 tsp. ground fennel)

1 1/2tsp freshly cracked black pepper

1-2# prepared vegetables of your choice: chunks of peeled carrot, onions, quartered fennel bulb, chunks of celery root, turnips, rutabagas, unpeeled garlic cloves.  Be creative and use what you have on hand.

A little mild tasting olive oil

About 2/3 c. pork stock, chicken stock or water.  (I used water)

Trimming, seasoning and tying up the pork (1-3 days in advance)

Chef Judy Rodgers gives a detailed explanation on how to season the pork thoroughly.   The bottom line is that you want to stuff as much seasoning inside the roast as possible.  To do this, “study the seams between the muscles on each side of the meat.  Choose one that runs the length of and close to the center of any face.  Use the tip of a knife to gingerly separate the muscles along that seam, gradually exposing more seams, which you should then separate as well…..salt the splayed piece of pork evenly all over.”  She recommends using ½ tsp. per pound of meat.

Combine the capers, lemon zest, garlic, sage, rosemary, fennel and black pepper. Set aside a Tablespoon or two to rub on the outside of the meat.  Rub this mixture all over the insides of the pork butt making sure you get some in all of the crevices that you have created. Reform the pork butt into it’s natural shape and tie tightly—about 4 or 5 strings around the circumference of the pork at evenly spaced intervals should do the trick.   Cover the pork and place in the fridge.

Roasting the porchetta (2 ¼ -2 ½ hours)

Preheat the oven to 350F

Toss the vegetables in a minimum of olive oil, barely coating the surfaces.  Add a little salt and toss again.

Heat a 12 or 14-inch ovenproof skillet, depending on how many veggies you are roasting, over medium heat.  Place the pork roast in the pan; it should sizzle. Surround with the vegetables. Place in the oven.  The roast should begin to color at 45 minutes; if not, turn the heat up to 375F until it does, then turn the heat back down.  At 1 hour, turn the roast over and roll the vegetables in the rendered fat.  Turn the roast again at 2 hours and add about 1/3 c. stock or water.   Roast for another 15 to 30 minutes to about 185F.  The pork should smell amazing and be a gorgeous golden brown color.  Transfer the meat to a platter and let rest for 20 minutes or so.  Place the veggies on a separate plate.  At this point the book gives instructions for a pan sauce, but I didn’t feel the need to make one.

After resting, slice and serve the pork with the roasted vegetables.

Enjoy!  Perfect with Pinot Noir.