Porchetta by Porco

I do love a bit of Porco action and I am always happy to see his stand around town, usually it is in Lady Bay or West Bridgford. This particular time I chanced upon them at the West Bridgford Xmas Lights switch on event where they were serving up their infamous Porchetta

It was Jez’s Porchetta that first got me into the food at Porco and for a while that was his main offering. Over the years he has branched out a lot more and won many plaudits and voted the Best Burger at the British Street Food Awards

Today it was back to the old days with a Porchetta Sandwich for £7 – ‘Spit Roast Porchetta, Aged Parmesan, Wild Rocket, Truffle Mayo and Hot Sauce‘ all tucked inside a local ‘Hambletons Bun‘

I was very happy to see this on the menu, although it has changed a little since I first had one back in 2013 (read more here) then it had caramelized onions in the bun as well. To be honest though I can see why he dropped that as you can let the meat talk all by itself with just a bit of sauce and salad

THE PORCHETTA

I was in luck when I got to the counter as there was a big old piece of the porchetta getting sliced to order to fill my bap so I took my opportunity to take a picture. I don’t often get as close with the crowds hanging around.

It did look really good with the meat wrapped around the herb filling. I went back to read my posts from 2013 when Jez had sent me the details on how to cook it. I really meant to have a go myself but I never got around to it. Anyway, not sure if it is still done the same way but this was the original method (different time and place 🙂 ).

“I take a whole middle – belly and loin (Free range Duroc from Woodside Farm, Wellow) and remove the spine and ribs, leaving the rib meat attached. Onto the meat side I add maldon sea salt, a toasted spice blend of fennel seeds, black pepper and a smidgen of chilli flakes. Then I sprinkle with finely grated lemon zest and finally layer generously with a paste composed of rosemary, sage, thyme, garlic and olive oil. I roll, tie and leave to cure overnight before running it through with the spit on the market square the following morning and letting the rotisserie work it’s magic.”

PORCHETTA SANDWICH

After a chat I bagged my Porchetta sandwich and took it away to eat amongst the people milling about. It is a very good sandwich, the meat is juicy and the herbs mixed with the lemon and garlic has a lovely zing and tang. I would like a bit more meat in the bap but there is enough really I am just needy 🙂

There is a good amount of crackling added in there as well and it is nice and crunchy as opposed to being hard so it adds nice texture into each bite, the fresh rocket adds some pepperiness and also a bit of freshness. The mayo mixed with the hot sauce is not too overpowering and there is just enough heat from the spice to get the juices flowing.

The only downside was that I wanted more and it was a bit too cold to hang around for long, but as always it was well worth tracking Jez down to eat his delicious food!