Roast Pork with Fruit mostarda
(serves four people)
Ask the butcher to score the pork for you, tracing deep lines through the rind and fat. Prepare the pork on Christmas Eve.
Make the pesto in a pestle and mortar or in a food processor. Cream the garlic with the sea salt. Add the olive oil, sage and black pepper and crush everything together to make a rough paste crushing the peppercorns roughly.
Open out the pork and rub the pesto all over the inside. Roll up the pork and, using butcher’s string, tie the roll together. (Start at one end, tying the string in loops, spaced out about two fingers width apart. Use a second piece to tie a circle lengthwise across the loops, just like tying a parcel). Rub the outside of the pork with some extra virgin olive oil and some more salt. This helps to crisp the crackling. Leave it well covered with foil to marinade in the fridge overnight.
Remove the pork from the fridge half an hour before roasting it. Pre-heat a very hot oven: 230°C/450F/Gas 8. Roast the pork for 20 minutes to start to crisp up the crackling.
Reduce the heat to fairly hot: 190C/375F/Gas 5 and roast for 25 minutes per 500g.
Baste the pork with a little lemon juice while it is cooking and test it 15 minutes before the allotted time. Push a skewer into the middle of the pork, away from the crackling for ease. The juices must run clear. If they are, remove the pork and leave it covered in a warm place before serving. If the juices are pink, roast it for a further 15 minutes but do not overcook it or it will be dry.
Serve the pork with 2 or 3 pieces of Mostarda di Frutta to give a sweet and sour accompaniment to the flavours. Serve with crispy roast potatoes and some bitter scarola.
