Alternative Sunday Supper. Post #1 The most scrummy Jamie Oliver inspired Porchetta!

ALL HAIL THE BRITISH ROAST. Well actually, if like me you get fed up of the traditional meat and two veg for Sunday feasting, this is the most delicious alternative. 

It uses Pork Shoulder, which, although fatty, makes for incredibly tender meat, which is both delicious and low cost. The shoulder is stuffed with a glorious sausage meat, sage and onion stuffing which is just divine. The fat melts away through hours of cooking too, which means you aren't actually eating it, it's there to keep the meat moist. Genius I know.

 The recipe posted below shows how to make crackling as an extra, but of course, if you're watching your waist... don't eat it! Don't be too strict with yourself though, everyone deserves a Sunday treat to help Curb those looming Monday morning blues. This recipe is inspired by Jamie Oliver, and his Porchetta recipe, however my stuffing is completely different. This can be served with whatever you fancy, we ate it with sautéed red cabbage ( chucked in a pan with olive oil and Worcestershire Sauce) and a Sweet Potato mash.  This recipe could also be made with a nice Loin of Pork, but Shoulder keeps it cheaper, and more melt in the mouth! I dare you to give this one a go, and you won't be disappointed. 

                                                                                     

Ingredients (serves 6-8) 

2.5-3 kg Butterflied and Boneless Pork Shoulder 

500g Sausage Meat 

2 Onions 

Large Glass Red Wine 

Large Handul Sage Leaves 

2 Garlic Cloves 

4/5 Carrots 

3 Slices of Bread (Preferably crusty or stale) 

Salt and Pepper 

Olive Oil 

Method 

1. Firstly, put your oven on full wack ready to give the crackling a head start. Open up the butterflied shoulder and rub with olive oil, and sprinkle liberally with salt and pepper. Do the same to the skin, and set aside. 

2. Now to get started on the stuffing. Dice your onions and put a good glug of olive oil into a frying pan. When heated add your onions and pine nuts, and sweat gently for 10 minutes. Then coarsely chop your sage leaves and add those to the pan as well. Mince in the garlic to the mix and sweat it all off for a further 5 minutes. 

3. When everything is soft let the mix cool. Once completely cool, add the sausage meat and mix everything together well. Season the stuffing with salt and pepper and add a glug of red wine. 

4. Finally, pop your bread slices in the blender until they represent course crumbs, and add those to the sausage meat. 

5. To stuff the Shoulder, open the meat out and put a hefty amount of your stuffing along the centre. Roll the meat up, and tie up the whole thing with enough string so that the stuffing won't fall out all over the place. 

6. Slice the carrots in half, and lay them in a roasting dish. Your pork will sit on top of this. Then  pop your rolled meat on the top of its carrot bed. Add a glass of water and a glass of wine to the bottom on the tray. 

7. Put the pork into the hot oven and roast at the high temperature for 20 minutes to get the crackling going. After the 20 minutes, turn the oven down to 160 degrees C, or 140 fan, and cook for a further 3 hours. 

8.When it comes out the crackling should be beautifully crisp and the meat juicy. If the layer of fat was too thick to turn into crackling through slow cooking, take the rind off and put it back into the oven, full wack, so that it will turn crispy.

9. To make a gravy,(optional) tip away the majority of the fat within the bottom of the tray, leaving just a thin coating. Put the tray onto the hob, and add a good glug of red wine, and any stock you have in the house. It is also nice to add a few sage sleeves if you have any left over. Reduce it down, and serve with your roast. 

10. Enjoy!