Italian Slow Roast Shoulder of Pork

SERVES 20
TAKES 8 1/2 HOURS

This is a wonderful dish for a large gathering or celebration, as all the work is done in advance and it just needs to be served with a huge salad of all the best seasonal vegetables topped with a good dressing. Prepared in full, this dish serves up to 20. Worthy of any great summer party.

From the Ginger Pig Meat Book pg. 275

Note this recipe is for a conventional oven, for fan adjust downwards by 15-20°C depending on how hot your oven runs!

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C. Place the garlic, bay, rosemary, fennel, chilli, onion, seasoning and 2 tablespoons of water in a blender and whizz to a coarse paste. Rub this generously all over the underside of the meat, avoiding the skin. Slice the lemons and place them and the rosemary in a roasting tin large enough for the pork.

2. Place the pork, skin side up, in the roasting tin. Add the wine, cover with a layer of baking parchment, then a layer of foil, sealing the edges tightly. Cook in the oven for 40 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 150°C and cook for a further 7 hours. Do check and baste the pork every couple of hours.

3. Remove the pork from the oven and lift it from the roasting tin. Pour the juices off into a saucepan. Return the pork to the roasting tin. Increase the oven temperature to 180°C and cook the pork uncovered for a further 30 minutes to crisp up the skin. Keep an eye on it at this stage, as it can overcook very easily.

4. Skim the fat from the juices with a metal spoon and discard. Bring the juices to a boil, then simmer and reduce by half. The pork should be so soft that it will not need carving; you just need a fork to scrape the meat from the bone. Serve with the juices.

• 1 head of garlic, cloves separated and peeled
• 5 bay leaves
• 2 tbsp chopped rosemary, plus a few more sprigs
• 2 tbsp fennel seeds, ground
• 2 tsp chilli flakes
• 1 large onion, peeled and chopped
• sea salt
• freshly ground black pepper
• 8kg (18]b) shoulder of pork, skin well scored
• 4 unwaxed lemons
• 750ml bottle of white wine – it should be something you would be happy drinking!