Porchetta with Apple Sauce

Discover the ultimate taste of Italy with porchetta! This juicy, aromatic pork roast, infused with spices and herbs, offers a unique culinary experience. Porchetta is made with slowly roasted pork belly (skin on), which makes the skin deliciously crispy and smoky while keeping the inside incredibly succulent and tender.

In Italy, porchetta is typically served from traditional vans during village festivals, fairs, and outdoor concerts, making it one of the most popular Italian street foods.

You can make porchetta using a single cut of boneless pork belly or shoulder, a mix of fatty belly and lean, tender loin—with the belly skin left on for optimal crispiness—gives you the best of both worlds.

Cook it up and embark on a flavorful journey with Chef Giorgos Tsoulis!

Porchetta with Apple Sauce

Giorgos Tsoulis

Enjoy this delicious traditional Italian dish made with pork belly that’s rolled and slow-roasted until tender on the inside and crispy on the outside. The pork is seasoned with a mixture of garlic, rosemary, and thyme, and served with apple sauce.

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Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 3 hours hrs 10 minutes mins

Total Time 3 hours hrs 20 minutes mins

Course Main Course

Cuisine Italian

Servings 7 servings

Ingredients

 

US CustomaryMetric

 

1x2x3x

• 3 kg pork belly with skin
• 6 tbsp chopped rosemary
• 6 tbsp chopped thyme
• 2 cloves garlic minced
• 2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
• zest of 1 lemon
• olive oil
• coarse salt
• pepper
• 400 g apple sauce

Instructions

 

• Preheat the oven to 150°C/300°F, on convection mode.
• In a bowl, combine the rosemary, thyme, garlic, crushed red pepper flakes, lemon zest, salt, and pepper, mixing well with a spoon.
• Place the pork belly on a work surface with the skin side facing up. Using a sharp knife, score the skin vertically, leaving about 1cm (0.4 inches) of space between each cut.
• Drizzle olive oil on both sides of the pork belly and evenly spread the herb mixture over it.
• Roll up the pork belly and tie it securely with kitchen twine.
• Fill a baking tray with water, place a rack on top, and set the pork belly on the rack.
• Cover the tray with parchment paper and aluminum foil, then roast for 2.5 to 3 hours.
• Switch the oven to grill mode, uncover the tray, sprinkle a bit of coarse salt on top, and roast again until the skin is golden and crispy.
• Remove the porchetta from the oven, slice into pieces, and serve with apple sauce.

Notes

Chef’s tip: Sprinkle the skin with coarse salt to draw out moisture and help it crisp up better during cooking.

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Giorgos Tsoulis

Celebrity Chef Giorgos Tsoulis specializes in modern Mediterranean cuisine and his recipes are widely appreciated not just in Greece and Cyprus but also around the world. He has been the executive chef of numerous successful Greek restaurants, while at the same time hosting many popular culinary TV shows in Greece and Cyprus. Giorgos Tsoulis is passionate about educating his fans in more sustainable and healthy cooking and eating while making the most of the flavors of the ingredients. As sustainable cuisine ambassador for WWF Hellas, he plays a key role in cooking activations that relate to the European #Eat4Change program, as well as the #Farm2Fork program.