a celebration of Humans, Food, & Culture
PORCHETTA RIPIENA RECIPE
Captured by
The Recipe Hunters
in Italy
"Stuffed, Rolled, & Roasted to Perfection"
Crunchy, Juicy, and Oozing with savory flavors, this Porchetta Ripiena (stuffed pork) recipe will melt in your mouth and have your tastebuds begging for more.
Porchetta Ripiena is an ancient, traditional Italian dish, believed to have originated during Etruscan times in the town of Ariccia in the province of Rome, where it is considered a culinary trademark and has been granted PGI status (protected geographical indication). Walking along the urban streets in the regions of Umbria and Lazio it is common to happen upon a food stand that serves this savory meat sliced in between two dense pieces of rustic, country bread. Porchetta Ripiena can also be found in homes and restaurants throughout central Italy served as a "secondi" or second course with a side of roasted potatoes and vegetables. We travelled to Orvieto, Italy, where Mamma Angela from L'Antica Rupe taught us her favorite homemade version of the recipe. Check out the Recipe Below!!
Mamma Angela, Leila, Anthony
Understanding the Recipe: You will be butterflying a piece of pancetta and stuffing it with liver, fennel and spices. You then roll the pancetta in on itself and tie it together in a tight log and roast it until crisp perfections. The resulting creation should be juicy on the inside and crunchy and salty on the outside.
The Recipe Hunters
Traditional Recipes
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2 cloves of garlic
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300 g of pork liver cut up into inch size pieces
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100 g of fresh fennel leaves
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1 cup of white wine
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3 kg piece of pancetta
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Salt & Pepper
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Olive oil
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Vegetable Oil
Ingredients for
Porchetta Ripiena
Recipe for
Porchetta Ripiena
Stuffing:
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Dice the garlic, chop the fennel leaves and cut the liver into 1" uniform pieces
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Preheat the oven to 240 degrees celcius
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Heat the olive oil in a frying pan on medium-low heat and add the garlic
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Once the garlic begins to soften (approx. 1 minute), add the liver pieces and turn the flame to medium heat
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Add 1 cup of white wine.
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Once the wine has reduced and the liver browns, add the chopped fennel and stir
Preparing the Porchetta:
*Made with Love Tip: Have two long pieces of string (1 meter each) on hand to start tying once you have rolled the porchetta.
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Inspect the porchetta for any little hairs that remain. On an open flame, burn off the little hairs or cut out any thin strips of skin that the hair is still attached too. After removing the hairs, be sure to wash the pancetta off.
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The pancetta should be about 3 inches thick. Imagine the red meat is like the pages of a book and the skin is the cover of the book. Place the pancetta on a flat cutting surface with the skin down. Place your knife on the center page of the book and slice open the center of the book so that you can unfold it open to double it's size. Do not cut all the way through the “binding” of the book because you need to have the entire piece of pancetta in tact. Unfold the pancetta and place it on the table.
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Place the pancetta on the table, skin down, making sure the that the half with the skin on it is farthest from you.
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Sprinkle salt and pepper throughout the surface of the meat
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Once the liver is browned, spread the liver and fennel in one even layer on top of the pancetta.
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Using both hands, begin to roll the pancetta away from you, grasping the pancetta rightly as you roll. After every roll, sprinkle a pinch of salt and pepper over of the rolled surface. Once the pancetta is tighly rolled together, At this point the skin should be on the outermost layer of the rolled pancetta.
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Once the pancetta is tighly rolled together, you can begin to tie the pancetta
Tying the Pancetta
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Place the string lengthwise underneath the rolled log of pancetta, bring the piece of string over the rolled pancetta and pull tightly, tying a simple knot at the edge of the log.
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Starting at the knot, begin to tie the string horizontally, bringing it under and over the log until you reach the other edge. Knot the string at this edge and cut the dangling piece of string.
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Add olive oil onto a flat cooking sheet and place the rolled pancetta upon the olive oil.
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Pour vegetable oil over the pancetta roll, sprinkle with pepper and salt and place in the oven.
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Cook for 2.5 hours or until you can put a stick through the pancetta and pull it out without any meat sticking to it. The skin of the pancetta should be golden brown and crisp when done.
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To serve, let cool and make sure to cut the string. Enjoy your porchetta ripiena, made with love.
