We’ve been on a roll since we did a smoking and curing course with Marsh Pig Salami a few months ago. We’ve been making batches of our own bacon and pancetta and it’s so good I don’t think we’ll ever go back to shop-bought.
Our first pancetta has just finished curing and I couldn’t think of a better way to use it than to wrap it round our home-grown asparagus. Any wafer-thin pancetta works, though I think smoked is nicest, but you can just as easily use thinly sliced streaky bacon.
PS: since I first posted this I’ve re-made it with the addition of a few drops of truffled rapeseed oil from Suffolk producer Scarlett and Mustard and it adds a whole new dimension. I’ve amended the recipe accordingly.
Pancetta-wrapped Asparagus
Ingredients:
18 spears of asparagus
6 thin slices of smoked pancetta or streaky bacon
Olive oil
Freshly-ground black pepper
Truffled rapeseed oil (optional)
Method:
Preheat the oven to 200C/400F/Gas Mark 6.
Wash and trim the asparagus by snapping off the woody ends and pat dry on kitchen roll.
Drizzle with a little olive oil then bundle up three spears and wind a strip of pancetta or bacon up around the stems. Keep going until you have six packages.
Grind over a little black pepper and roast for around 15-20 minutes or until the thick part of the stems can be easily pierced with the tip of a knife and the pancetta is crisping up.
You can add a little shaved parmesan to serve but really it’s just gilding the lily. However, a few drops of truffled rapeseed oil added just before serving is delicious.
Oh! Simple ways are the best, aren’t they? And if you’ve managed to produce every ingredient yourself (perhaps not the olive oil and pepper?), well….. what pleasure.
No, not the oil and pepper! But I was pleased with our first attempt at pancetta and the asparagus is always fabulous. Thank you, Margaret.
I have nostagie de aspagras…..
À la recherche du temps perdu.