Maiale ai Funghi Porcini -- Pork with Porcini

This recipe, drawn from Gianfranco Bergamaschi's L'Antica Arte del Maiale, calls for porcini, but should also work with other flavorful wild mushrooms. Industrially grown champignons won't do it justice.

• 1 1/2 pounds boneless pork
• 3/4 pound fresh procini or other wild mushrooms
• Flour
• 3/8 cup olive oil
• 2 gloves garlic, peeled and crushed
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 pinch oregano
• 1 pint dry white wine, heated
• 1 ladle (about 2/3 cup) hot broth
• A small bunch parsley, minced
• A pinch of marjoram

Rub the meat with salt and dredge it in the flour, then brown it in a pot with 3 tablespoons of oil. Once it's browned pick over the mushrooms, scraping the stems to remove dirt and (if need be) washing them under cool running water and patting them dry. Cut them into quarter-inch or slightly thicker slices.

Heat the remaining oil in a second pot and sauté the garlic and the bay leaf until the garlic is browned 9don't let it burn). Remove and discard the bay leaf and garlic and place the meat in the pot, with half the onions, the oregano, the wine, and the broth. Let everything simmer for a half hour to 45 minutes, occasionally stirring about what's in the bottom of the pot.

Remove the meat and blend sauce with the cooked mushrooms. Return the meat and the sauce to the pot, together with the marjoram, minced parsley, and sliced mushrooms. Check seasoning and simmer the meat uncovered, turning it occasionally, until the meat is quite tender and the sauce has thickened. When it is done remove the meat to a platter and slice it. Ladle the mushroom sauce over it and serve it with squares of grilled polenta, and an elegant wine along the lines of a Pinot Nero or a Carmignano d'annata.

A printer-friendly version of this recipe.

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