Porchetta Sandwich with Salsa Verde

I really want to make my own porchetta someday soon, I really do, but not now. Soon.

So, we were at the Gucci Loblaw's, housed in the former Maple Leaf Gardens which is hallowed ground for Torontonians, and I was about to grab a pork tenderloin when I spied a ready to cook PC porchetta . Normally, I am leery of this type of thing but I was hungry and feeling kind of lazy and I am generally pretty happy with most PC products, so I bought it.



I am happy to report that it's really quite good! The marinade is tasty, it doesn't taste all weird and chemically like many other premarinated meats out there, it was tender and tasty and the crackling layer on the top crisped up beautifully. The smell, while it was roasting, was crazy and we were all dying by the time it was finished. Is it the best porchetta you are ever going to eat? No, but for under $10, the three of us had enough for dinner and then these sandwiches the next day. I will totally buy this again and cook it just for the sandwiches and I am glad that I didn't read those reviews before buying one because I might have thought twice about it. One of these days I am going to tackle a porchetta from scratch, but, for now, this will do pig. This will do.

Porchetta Sandwich

cold porchetta, chopped roughlysome chopped cracklinggrainy dijonsalsa verdearugulabun (they requested a cheese bun)

Cut the bun in half and butter it. Now, heat a pan over med high heat and toast the bun, buttered side down.  While you do that, you want to heat the meat gently - I just threw it in the microwave for a minute but if you have an issue with microwaves, you could warm it up in a pan over med heat but the microwave works perfectly. When the buns are nice and toasty, lay the bottom piece down on a plate. Add some mustard, pile on as meat at you would like, dribble lots of salsa verde on that, crown the whole thing with a handful of argula and then squash the top of the bun down on the whole thing.

Salsa Verde

1/2 shallot, chopped
about 3 tbls chopped italian parsley
1 small scallion, chopped
1 1/2 tbls white balsamic vinegar
1/4 tsp kosher saltabout 
100 ml extra virgin olive oil (right in between 1/2 and 1/3 cup)
1/4 tsp herb de province dijon (you can use any old dijon you want)

Put all of the ingredients in a blender or food processor. I like to use my handy, dandy magic bullet - so perfect for small batches like this. You can always just make sure everything is minced and do it in a bowl, whisking in the oil to make an emulsion if you don't have something that can handle such a small amount of stuff.