While traveling in Umbria a few years ago I became enamored with porchetta, a local delicacy of pork slowly roasted with rosemary and garlic. Here’s a sausage version that also includes some aromatic lemon zest.
Medium hog sausage casings (optional)
11/2 pounds pork butt or boneless country ribs
1/2 pound pork fat
1/4 cup dry white wine
1/4 cup chopped fresh rosemary
6 garlic cloves, minced
2 teaspoons grated lemon zest
11/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1. If using sausage casings, prepare them as directed.
2. Cut pork and pork fat into 1-inch cubes. Place cubes on a sheet of plastic wrap on a plate and freeze for 30 minutes, or until very firm.
3. Grind meat and fat through the fine disk of a meat grinder, or in small batches in a food processor fitted with the steel blade using the on-and-off pulse button. If using a food processor, do not process into a paste, but ingredients should be very finely chopped.
4. Combine ground meat, rosemary, wine, garlic, lemon zest, salt, and pepper in a mixing bowl, and knead mixture until well blended. Fry 1 tablespoon of mixture in a small skillet over medium-high heat. Taste and adjust seasoning, if necessary.
5. Stuff mixture into casings as described, if using, and twist off into 5-inch links; prick air bubbles with a straight pin or skewer. Alternately, keep sausage in bulk. If time permits, refrigerate mixture for at least 30 minutes to blend flavors if being kept in bulk, or air-dry links refrigerated, uncovered, on a cooling rack placed over a baking sheet for 1 day before cooking.
6. Cook sausages as directed to an internal temperature of 160°F when pierced with an instant-read thermometer or as directed in a specific recipe.
Note: Sausages can be refrigerated up to 2 days or frozen up to 2 months. Once cooked, they can be refrigerated up to 3 days.