Porchetta: The Ultimate Festive Celebration Pork
Few dishes command a dining table quite like a classic Italian Porchetta. A centrepiece of festive gatherings, village fairs, and central Italian street-food stalls, this slow-roasted masterpiece balances rich, tender meat with a fragrant herbal core and shatteringly crisp, blistered crackling. At Carluccio's, we absolutely LOVE this dish.
The History of Porchetta
Porchetta’s origins stretch deep into ancient Roman times. Historically, whole pigs were boned, heavily seasoned with simple ingredients like wild herbs, garlic, and salt, then roasted over wood fires for major communal feasts and public celebrations.
The town of Ariccia, situated in the Castelli Romani hills just south of Rome, claims the most famous heritage—earning a protected IGP (Indicazione Geografica Protetta) status for its recipe. However, regions across central Italy have championed the dish for centuries, turning it into the king of street food. Served thick-cut inside crusty ciabatta or panino rolls, it remains the ultimate market-day feast.
Regional Twists
While the technique of rolling belly around the loin remains consistent, the internal aromatics vary greatly by region:
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Lazio & Umbria: Heavily feature wild fennel pollen or seeds, garlic, and fresh rosemary, occasionally incorporating minced offal into the centre stuffing for depth.
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Tuscany: Favours dominant fresh sage alongside rosemary and crushed garlic, often keeping the seasoning intensely peppery.
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Le Marche: Incorporates wild fennel stalks and garlic, often basting the roast with local white wine as it cooks.
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Sardinia: Uses smaller suckling pigs (porceddu), seasoned simply with sea salt, pepper, and fresh myrtle branches during wood-firing.
Carluccio’s Celebration Porchetta Recipe
This home-adapted celebration roast uses a "middle of pork"—a boneless loin wrapped inside a rind-on pork belly.
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Prep time: 30 mins (plus overnight chilling)
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Cook time: 4 hours
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Serves: 10–12
Ingredients
The Pork
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3.5kg – 4kg Pork middle (loin wrapped in belly, boned, skin left intact and scored)
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1 tbsp Fine sea salt (for drying the skin)
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1 tbsp Good Olive Oil
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1 tbsp Flaky sea salt (for the final finish)
The Herb & Spice Rub
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3 tbsp Fennel seeds
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3 tbsp Fresh rosemary leaves, finely chopped
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1 head of Garlic, cloves peeled and minced
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1 tbsp Black peppercorns, coarsely cracked
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1 tbsp Flaky sea salt
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1 tsp Red chilli flakes (optional)
Preparation Method
The night before cooking, place the pork skin-side up on a wire rack set over a tray. Pat the skin completely dry with paper towels and rub evenly with 1 tablespoon of fine salt. Leave uncovered in the fridge overnight to draw out surface moisture.
Remove the pork from the fridge 1 hour before roasting. In a dry frying pan over medium heat, toast the fennel seeds for 1–2 minutes until fragrant. Coarsely crush them using a pestle and mortar, then combine with the chopped rosemary, minced garlic, cracked black pepper, chilli flakes, and sea salt.
Flip the pork skin-side down onto a clean cutting board. Score the exposed flesh in a diamond pattern to allow the seasonings to penetrate. Rub the herb and spice mixture evenly across all of the inner meat.
Roll the belly tightly around the central loin meat, ensuring the skin meets on the outside without overlapping too heavily inside. Secure the roll tightly with butcher's twine at 2cm intervals along the entire length. Pat the exterior skin dry once more, rub lightly with olive oil, and sprinkle with a final pinch of sea salt.
Preheat your oven to 150°C (130°C fan / Gas Mark 2). Position the porchetta on a rack set inside a deep roasting tray. Roast for 3.5 to 4 hours until the internal temperature reaches 68°C at the thickest part.
Increase the oven temperature to its maximum setting (230°C–240°C / Gas Mark 9). Roast for a final 20–30 minutes, watching closely as the skin bubbles, blisters, and turns deep golden-brown.
Transfer the porchetta to a carving board and let it rest uncovered for 25–30 minutes before carving into thick rounds with a serrated knife.
