Australian Gourmet Traveller - (07)July 2020 (1)

3 kgbonelessporkshoulder,

trimmedofextrafat

4 cloves

3 tbspoliveoil

40 gmbutter

3 sprigsofsage

6 garliccloves,peeled

3 freshbayleaves

1.5 litresmilk

Peeledzestof2 lemons

Wilted greens, to serve

1 Seasonporkwellwithsea

saltandstudwithcloves.

2 Placea largecasseroledish

orDutchovenovermedium-

high heat. Add pork and cook

untilbrownedevenlyonall

sides(10minutes).Remove

porkandsetaside.

3 Reduceheattomedium,

thenaddbutter,sageand

garlicandcookuntilfragrant

(2minutes).Addbayleaves,

milkandlemonzest.Bringto

a simmer,addporkandplace

thelidon,partiallyaskew,to

allowthesteamtoescape,

andleavetocookovera low

heatuntilmeatis meltingly

tender(3hours).

4 Serveinslices,withextra

saucespoonedoverthetop,

and wilted greens on the side.➤

MAIALEALLATTE

Porkcooked in milk with cloves

SERVES 8

Porkcookedinmilkis a well-knownandlovedItalianclassic.Milk,

whencookedlikethis,becomessweet,nutty,faintlycaramelised

andalmostcheesy.It’sa littlelikeeatingmeatwitha sortof

cheese-infusedcream.Thecookedmilkcurdshavethe same

savoury caramel note as a good aged Parmesan.

I

taliancookingis adoredworldwidebecauseit is the

foodofhome,andis therefore,ultimately,comfort

food.Comfortfoodis foodthatmakesyoueitherfeel

athome,orthinkofhome.It doesn’tmatterwhere

youare,orwhosehomeyouhappentobein,it justinstils

inyouthatwarm,fuzzyfeelingthatyou’resomewheresafe,

eatingsomethinggood,andallis notlost.

I amnotItalian– notevenclose– butsomehow,Italian

foodtakesmehome.

ThegloryofItalianfood,andthereasonwhyit remains

soendlesslypopular,is thatit is essentiallyhome-cooking.

JustlikeMammausedtomake.It’sa crashingcliché,but

thatdoesn’tstopit beingtrue.

SohowdoesthefoodofSardiniadiffer,orcompare?

Sardinianfoodis a distilledversionofItalianfood:simpler,

morerustic,morewild.Theemphasisontraditionandon

theimportanceofeatingwellis evenmorepronouncedhere

onthisforgottenisland.Evenmoreofitsancientdelicaciesare

preserved,evenmoreofitsproducegrownormadeathome.

Sardiniahasbecomemyhome.AssoonasI movedtothe

island,I wasremindedthatgoodfoodis notaboutbeing

a slavetoauthenticity,oraboutcomplication,technique,

ortrends,butaboutsharing,aboutpeopleand– most

importantly– aboutenjoyment.TheSardiniansI havemet

havewelcomedmeintotheirhomes.Theyhavesharedtheir

time,theirknowledge,theirmealsandtheirrecipes,with

nomotiveotherthantheir immense love for life, for their

land and their cuisine.

GOURMET TRAVELLER 85