Petit Salé with Winter Root Vegetables and Ceps is a modern British recipe (based on an French original) for a classic winter stew of belly pork, root vegetables and ceps. The full recipe is presented here and I hope you enjoy this classic British version of: Petit Salé with Winter Root Vegetables and Ceps.
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This mushroom dish is based on the slow-cooked winter belly pork dishes of Normandy and Northern France (not the salted pork dishes of the Auvergne). The name petit salé literally means 'lightly salted'.
The cep would be my preferred wild mushroom to use here, but bay boletes and field mushrooms (or other edible Agaricus species) could be substituted.
Ingredients:
6 smoked garlic cloves
8 baby turnips
1 small swede, peeled and cut into bite-sized pieces
300g Chantenay carrots
8 shallots, peeled but kept whole
1kg belly pork (from the middle belly)
sprig of thyme
sprig of rosemary
sprig of sage
1 bay leaf
500ml sweet cider
1l chicken stock
25g butter
glug of olive oil
500g ceps, sliced
salt and freshly-ground black pepper, to taste
8 Savoy cabbage leaves, roughly sliced
Method:
Combine the garlic, turnips, swede, carrots, shallots, pork and herbs in a large cast iron casserole (Dutch oven). Pour over the cider and chicken stock then place over medium heat and brin to a boil. Reduce to a simmer, cover and cook gently for 2 hours.
Twenty minutes before the end of the cooking time, melt the butter and oil in a frying pan. Once hot, add the sliced ceps and season with salt and black pepper. Cook briskly for 1 minute over high heat, until the ceps are lightly coloured.
Add the ceps to the casserole and continue cooking for about 12 minutes. At this point add the sliced Savoy cabbage and cook for 7 minutes more.
When ready to serve, remove the belly pork from the casserole and cut into eight thick slices.
Spoon the vegetables and mushrooms into a warmed serving dish. Arrange the pork belly slices on top then serve accompanied by warm crusty bread.
