Holiday Porchetta

This recipe is from Patrick Maese at patrickmaese.com, where you’ll find lots of delicious low-carb recipe ideas. Here is the full Porchetta recipe with additional notes.

Servings: 8

Please note: pork belly needs to be refrigerated for 24 hours after seasoning

Ingredients:

• 5 to 7 lb boneless pork belly, skin on
• 2 tablespoons fennel seeds, toasted
• 1.5 tablespoons salt
• 1.5 tablespoons ground pepper
• 1 tablespoon crushed red pepper
• 1 tablespoon fresh rosemary, chopped
• 2 tablespoons fresh sage, chopped
• 2 tablespoons fresh thyme, chopped
• 6 cloves garlic
• 2 tablespoons olive oil

Instructions:

1. Begin by lightly toasting fennel seeds in a pan over medium heat until fragrant, about 1-2 minutes. Let cool.
2. Combine fennel seeds, salt, pepper, red pepper, rosemary, sage, thyme, garlic and olive oil into a food processor and pulse into a rough paste. Add additional oil if paste is too dry.
3. Place pork belly onto a large cutting board, skin side up. Using a sharp knife, score the skin to create a diamond pattern. Then flip the belly over and rub paste into the flesh using your hands.
4. Roll belly into a log and tie tightly using butcher’s twine. Twine should be evenly spaced about an inch apart. Refrigerate pork belly, uncovered, overnight to ensure the skin dries out so it becomes crispy.
5. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F and place the pork belly seam-side down onto a v rack set in a large roasting pan.
6. Roast pork belly for 2-3 hours, basting every 30 minutes. Once internal temperature reaches 145 degrees F, raise oven to 500 degrees F and cook for an additional 10 minutes until skin browns and becomes crispy.
7. Rest for 15 minutes before slicing with a serrated knife.