See also these related pork recipes:
Ingredients: Serves 4-6.
- 2 tbsp butter, plus more if needed
- 2 tbsp olive oil, plus more if needed
- 3-4 lb pork shoulder, rolled and tied, seasoned with salt and pepper
- 1 small onion, diced (about 1 cup)
- 1 small fennel bulb, green tops trimmed, white portion diced (about 1 cup)
- 4 cups whole milk, plus more if needed
- 6 fresh sage leaves
- 2 small, fresh rosemary branches, leaves picked
- 1 tbsp fresh thyme leaves (I just threw in 2 thyme sprigs and fished them out before blending)
- 4 cloves garlic, peeled, smashed
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions: Note: Ask your butcher to roll and tie the pork shoulder for you, if you’re unsure how to do this at home.
- Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
- Over medium-high heat, melt butter and olive oil in a small Dutch oven or heavy-bottomed pot with a tight-fitting lid. Brown meat on all sides, about 8-10 minutes. Set meat aside. If butter and oil has burned, remove it and wipe pan clean, then add 1-2 tbsp more each of butter and olive oil. Reduce heat to medium and saute onions and fennel until soft. Return roast to pot, add milk, herbs and garlic and bring to a boil. Remove from heat.
- Season with salt and pepper to taste, cover and place in the oven for 1 hour, turning meat once. (Note: the sauce will look curdled and the curds will have turned a nut brown color). If most of the milk has evaporated, add 1 cup more milk. With the lid slightly ajar, cook for 1 more hour, turning meat once again. Check for tenderness. You may need to cook it for 30 minutes more if your roast is on the large side. Remove meat and let it rest.
- Skim any oil off top of cooking liquid, then place liquid in a blender and emulsify (pulsing a few times quickly at first to avoid the liquid exploding out the top of the blender!) Season to taste. To serve, slice meat, cover with sauce, and serve with mashed potatoes.
This recipe is courtesy of Camas Davis, Portland Meat Collective: “Here’s my favorite recipe for the coppa (part of the shoulder). The best recipes are of course passed from hand to hand, so these are recipes I was handed by other people who were likely handed them by other people. This recipe is from Chris Israel, chef and owner of Gruner in Portland. ” Included with Food.Farmer.Earth in the Kitchen How to Butcher a Pig.