Pork and Leek Pappardelle

Ingredients

• 2.75 lb Bone-in pork shoulder (About 2.75 pounds; use the rendered fat for browning if sufficient.)
• 1 tbsp Maldon salt (For seasoning the pork.)
• 4 Leeks (Cleaned and roughly chopped; use both white and green parts.)
• 3 Garlic cloves (Peeled, smashed, and left whole.)
• 2 Shallots (Roughly chopped.)
• 2 Rosemary sprigs (Roughly chopped.)
• 1 tsp Sage (Chopped.)
• 8 Thyme stems (Left whole.)
• 1 tsp Maldon salt (For seasoning the vegetables.)
• 1 tbsp Olive oil (Stir into the vegetables to coat them.)
• 1.5 cup Water (For deglazing the skillet.)
• 0.5 cup Parmigiano Reggiano (Microplane-grated, plus more for finishing.)
• 0.25 cup Heavy whipping cream
• 1.5 tbsp Parsley (Finely chopped, plus more for finishing.)
• 24 oz Pappardelle (Cook until just under al dente.)
• Salt (For the pasta water; salt it to the saltiness of the sea.)
• Pasta cooking water (Reserve and add as necessary when finishing the pasta in the sauce.)
• Parmigiano Reggiano (For dusting the finished pasta.)
• Parsley (Chopped, for sprinkling over the finished pasta.)

Steps

1. 1

   Preheat the oven to 225°F convection.

2. 2

   Season the pork shoulder on all sides with the tablespoon of Maldon salt.

3. 3

   Brown the pork shoulder on all sides in a skillet, beginning with the fat side down. Use the fat rendered from the pork for browning; if it does not render enough, add some additional fat as needed.

4. 4

   While the pork browns, prepare the vegetables by roughly chopping the leeks and shallots, peeling and smashing the garlic, and chopping the rosemary and sage. Leave the thyme stems whole.

5. 5

   Place the leeks, garlic, shallots, rosemary, sage, and thyme in a covered casserole. Season the vegetables with the teaspoon of Maldon salt and stir in the olive oil to coat everything.

6. 6

   When the pork is nicely browned, place it on top of the vegetables in the casserole.

7. 7

   Deglaze the skillet with the water, scraping up the browned bits. Skim off excess fat, then pour the deglazing liquid over the pork.

8. 8

   Cover the casserole and place it in the preheated oven. Cook for about 6 hours, until the pork is fall-apart tender.

9. 9

   Remove the pork from the casserole. Remove the bone and any tough herb stems. Shred about half of the pork and set it aside; reserve the other half for another dish.

10. 10

    Skim any fat from the surface of the vegetables, then remove the thyme stems. Transfer the cooked vegetables and their cooking liquid to a large pan.

11. 11

    Add the grated Parmigiano Reggiano, heavy whipping cream, and chopped parsley to the cooked leeks. Add a little water if needed, and cook briefly over medium heat for about 1 to 3 minutes, until the sauce thickens.

12. 12

    Stir the shredded pork into the leek sauce.

13. 13

    Bring a pot of water to a boil and salt it until it tastes as salty as the sea. Cook the pappardelle until just under al dente.

14. 14

    Remove the pasta directly from the water with a slotted strainer and transfer it to the sauce.

15. 15

    Finish cooking the pappardelle in the sauce, adding reserved pasta cooking water as necessary to loosen and emulsify the sauce.

16. 16

    Plate the pasta and spoon additional sauce over it. Finish with a dusting of Parmigiano Reggiano and a sprinkle of chopped parsley.

Notes

The pork cooks low and slow for about six hours, so plan ahead or make it the day before. The recipe uses approximately half of the pork for the pasta; the remaining pork can be used for sandwiches, tacos, another sauce over mashed potatoes, or another dish. The dish can also be served over mashed potatoes instead of pasta. The source does not specify how much additional browning fat, pasta cooking water, finishing Parmesan, or finishing parsley is needed.

Nutrition per serving

• main
• pasta
• slow-cooked
• Italian-inspired
• large-batch
• make-ahead
• pork
• comfort food