Italian Grill - Mario Batali [56]
Prepare a gas grill for spit-roasting over indirect medium heat (or according to the instructions for your grill). Set up the drip pan under the center of the spit.
Combine the sage, garlic, fennel pollen, salt, pepper, and olive oil in a food processor and process to a coarse paste. Rub this mixture into the nooks and crannies in the surface of the ham.
Place the roast on the spit and secure it with the clamps. Attach the spit to the rotisserie mechanism, cover the grill, and cook the ham for about 3 hours, or until the internal temperature reaches 150°F.
Meanwhile, for the glaze, combine the brown sugar, cider vinegar, mustard, and fennel seeds in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Reduce the heat and simmer until reduced to about ¾ cup and syrupy. Pour into a bowl and set aside.
When the pork has reached 150°F, brush on a thin layer of the glaze. Continue cooking, brushing with the glaze two more times, until the internal temperature reaches 160°F. Transfer the pork to a carving board and allow to rest for 30 minutes before carving and serving.
I make this all the time—it’s what spit-roasting was invented for. Alla porchetta refers to the great regional specialty made with a whole suckling pig, boned and flavored with garlic and rosemary or other herbs, including wild fennel. Porchetta is the centerpiece of many Italian festivals and other celebrations, but it is also served from street carts and market stalls, sliced to order for a casual snack or a sandwich.
VEGETABLES
Vegetables are treated with reverence in Italy, and in restaurants, contorni are served as a separate course, not as a secondary player overshadowed by the main dish. At home, the vegetables are more likely to accompany the main dish, as they do here. But for both restaurant chefs and home cooks, seasonality is the key, and I suggest that you, like them (and me), view the first step in cooking vegetables—the shopping—as the most important one. Shop at a farmers’ market or farm stand whenever you can, and buy local, preferably organic, produce whenever possible. Sure, you can get asparagus in January and raspberries in November, but if you try to respect the seasons, you will truly be rewarded.
Italians almost always prepare vegetables simply, so the fennel, or the eggplant, or the red pepper tastes like itself. The recipes in this chapter reflect the same philosophy, offering simply grilled vegetables that may be marinated or simply finished with a drizzle of vinaigrette. And grilling can somehow bring out the essence of a vegetable, emphasizing the underlying smokiness in eggplant, whether in Thousand-Ridges Japanese Eggplant or Eggplant Parmigiana Packets, or caramelizing the natural sugars in Thick-Sliced Onions with Lemon Thyme. Grilled Porcini with Vin Cotto is one of the most extravagant recipes in the book and one of the simplest—if you start with fresh porcini, it is a criminal act to do much more than brush them with garlic-scented oil and toss them (gently) onto the grill just until golden brown and tender. Asparagus with Lemon-Prosciutto Vinaigrette, Scallions with Almond Pesto, and Grilled Artichokes with Mint and Chilies are all elegant dishes too—because of their main ingredient, not because of some fussy technique or preparation. And Corn as Italians Would Eat It may be wildly inauthentic, but it’s fun and delicious, and nobody you know will be able to resist it.
GRILLED PORCINI
WITH VIN COTTO
SERVES 6
¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
¼ cup chopped fresh Italian parsley
6 large porcini mushrooms, brushed clean and cut lengthwise in half
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
Vin cotto for drizzling
PREHEAT A GAS GRILL or prepare a fire in a charcoal grill.
In a small bowl, combine the olive oil, garlic, and parsley. Brush the mushrooms on both sides with the oil and place cut side down on the