Stuffed Pork Fillet

Like with beef, the fillet is the tenderest piece of pork available. It is a versatile cut that cooks quickly and is often used in a stir fry. This is the first time I've ever treated it as a roasting joint and I was pleasantly surprised. The problem with the fillet is that it can dry out if overcooked. With beef this can be combated by cooking the joint/steaks rare but (as far as I know) pork should still be cooked through. The key piece of equipment with the fillet is a thermometer. As soon as it hits 73 degrees in the middle, remove it from the oven, let it rest and then slice and serve. The stuffing here adds lots of flavour as the fillet can be a bland cut. You can get your butcher to butterfly the fillet or follow the instructions here.

Serves 3-4

For the stuffing:
3 tbsp Extra-Virgin Olive Oil
1 Onion (finely chopped)
2 cloves of Garlic (finely chopped)
3 fillets of Anchovies in oil (finely chopped)
1 Bay Leaf
125g Kidney (finely chopped)
125g Fresh Breadcrumbs

1 500-600g Pork Fillet (Butterflied)
1 Carrot (sliced)
1 Onion (sliced)
2 cloves of Garlic (crushed with the side of a knife)
1 tbsp Extra-Virgin Olive Oil
1 glass of Red Wine
Chicken Stock

Sea Salt and Freshly Ground Pepper

1. First make the stuffing. Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil over a medium heat and add the onion, garlic, anchovies and bay leaf. Season with some pepper and cook for 5-6 minutes until the onions are soft but not coloured. Add the kidney and cook for 4-5 minutes before stirring in the breadcrumbs and mixing well. Mix in the remaining tablespoon of oil and set aside to cool.

2. Open out the butterflied fillet and spread half of the stuffing on top of it. Roll it up length ways and tie with some butchers string. Rub the oil into the meat and season well. Spread the carrot, onion and garlic out over a baking tray and put the rolled fillet on top. Put into a 180 degree pre-heated oven and cook for 35 minutes. Pour the wine in on top of the vegetables and put back into the oven for 15-20 minutes until the centre hits 73 degrees. If you wish to cook the remaining stuffing, put it in an oven proof bowl, cover with tin foil and put into the oven too.

3. Remove the fillet to a plate and cover with foil to rest. Pour the wine and vegetables into a saucepan and add a little chicken stock. Simmer for ten minutes before straining. You can thicken with corn flour if you wish but I like it left as is.

4. Carve the fillet into slices and serve with some boiled baby potatoes and vegetables. Cover everything in the delicious sauce!

Porchetta

Porchetta is a beautiful Italian dish which, along with Pecorino Romano, is probably the most important food to come from the Lazio region. Traditionally it was made by cleaning out and de-boning a pig, stuffing it with some of the entrails and herbs and roasting it whole over a wood buring fire. It is said to have been the favourite dish of the emperor Nero, clearly a man with good taste! 

This recipe is a slightly simpler approach to the classic. Pork belly gives the perfect mix of crackling, fat and flesh while the liver in the stuffing balances the sweet meat perfectly. Porchetta can be served as a roast dinner but to me it's at its best thinly sliced on a crispy bap. Whatever isn't eaten can be sliced and frozen.

Serves 6 as dinner or 12 sandwiches

1.5 KG piece of boneless Pork Belly
1 tbsp Extra-Virgin Olive Oil
2 sprigs of Rosemary
Sea Salt and Freshly Ground Pepper
Butcher's String

For the Stuffing:

1 tbsp Extra-Virgin Olive Oil
1 Onion (finely chopped)
1 clove of Garlic (finely chopped)
150g Pork Liver (finely chopped)
1 tsp Dried Oregano
1/4 glass of Red Wine
Handful of Flaked Almonds
Sea Salt and Freshly Ground Pepper

1. First make the stuffing. Add the oil to a pan over a medium heat and add the onion and garlic. Season lightly and cook for 7-10 minutes until softened. Be careful not to burn the garlic. Add the liver and oregano and continue to cook for 1-2 minutes before adding the wine. Cook off the alcohol for 2-3 minutes and remove from the heat. Stir in the flaked almonds and allow to cool completely.

2. Lay the belly out, skin side down, and season well. Spread the stuffing out evenly all over the meat and carefully roll the meat up so that the stuffing is on the inside with the skin on the outside. Tie up every few centimeters to hold the joint together. Cover and put into the fridge for a few hours (or overnight) to marinade.

3. Make sure the outside of the Porchetta is completely dry before putting it into a baking dish with the seem on the the bottom. Pour over the oil and scatter the rosemary on top. Season and put into a pre-heated 200 degree oven. Cook for 20 minutes before turning the temperature down to 160 degrees. Cook for a further two and a half hours, turning back up to 200 for the final 10-15 minutes.

Ragu Pie

Leftover Ragu Pie

A good ragu is a beautiful thing; different meats stewed for hours with a little tomato to create a rich and delicious sauce. In Ireland this isn't usually the case. Here we tend to put in a bit of beef mince, a jar or two of (insert your favourite brand here) bolognese sauce and give it a half hour on the stove. We then add it to overcooked spaghetti and because spaghetti can't hold a thick sauce, we're left with a giant puddle of something that tastes like a very sweet tomato sauce with a little mince going through it. Try this instead:

Heat a good glug of extra-virgin olive oil over a medium heat and add a finely chopped onion. Cook for 2 minutes before adding a finely chopped carrot, a finely chopped chilli and a finely chopped stick of celery. Season well and cook for 5-7 minutes until soft but not coloured. Add 400 g of beef mince, 200 g of lamb mince, 200 g of pork mince and 2 finely chopped lamb kidneys. Season and brown all over before adding a glass of good red wine. Cook for 5 minutes and add 500 g of tomato passata and a teaspoon of dried oregano. Cover, reduce the heat and cook for 2-3 hours.

This will give you a delicious and deep flavoured ragu. Serve with tagliatelle or some penne pasta that will hold the sauce. Italians reckon 100g of pasta is enough per person but they generally have a couple of courses so I think for safety, if its the only course, I'd allow 120g per person.

Invariably, no matter how many have to be fed, I'm always left with plenty of leftover ragu. It's so filling that you don't need to serve massive portions; enough to coat the pasta is perfect. I've been thinking of ways to use up leftover ragu and a somewhat obvious Shepherd's Pie came to mind. It's not the same as the lamb filling but I thought it might be a nice change and it would create another substantial dish to feed many. If you only have a little ragu left don't worry; even a thin layer will be sufficient.



Preheat oven to 180 degrees. Peel as many sweet potatoes as you need and boil in lightly salted water until tender. Drain, season well and mash adding about half a glass of milk (or cream if you prefer) as you do so. Check for seasoning and add extra salt/pepper if required. Lightly oil a baking dish (one that you'd use for a Lasagna or a Shepherd's Pie will be perfect) and spread the ragu evenly over the base. Add a layer of Parma ham/prosciutto on top of the ragu and spread the sweet potato mash over the prosciutto. Flatten with a fork, creating little peaks as you go. Sprinkle plenty of pepper over the top and place in the oven to cook for 30-40 mins. Serve with good crusty bread.

This pie can be adapted to your own taste. Feel free to add a layer of Parmesan cheese after the prosciutto or swap the sweet potatoes for normal potatoes if you prefer. I didn't give exact quantities here as it depends how much ragu you have left. A thick layer is great but as I said above, a thin layer of ragu is fine, the rest can be made up with the sweet potato; its probably healthier!