Pork And Fennel Sausage Sandwich With Pickled Hot Peppers Broccoli Rabe And Provolone Food

ITALIAN PORK SANDWICHES (DINIC'S COPYCAT PHILLY PORK SANDWICH)

Steps:

• Marinate the meat the night before. If needed, trim the skin off of the pork shoulder while you're butterflying it, but don't trim away the fat cap on top. We used a 4-pound piece off of a larger cut, so we also had a small bone to butterfly around.
• Sprinkle evenly all over with salt (to avoid oversalting, sprinkle it from a height above the meat so it spreads evenly without needing to use a ton). Combine 1½ tablespoons ground fennel seeds, 1½ tablespoons dried thyme, 2 tablespoons dried oregano, and 1 tablespoon fresh minced rosemary leaves. Generously rub the meat all over with this seasoning. Next, stir together the 3 tablespoons of minced parsley and the minced garlic. Spread the majority on the inner parts of the butterflied pork shoulder, and distribute the rest on the top.
• Rebundle the pork shoulder so it is in a relatively tight roll. Place in a roasting pan, and surround with the thinly sliced onion. Drizzle a little olive oil over the onions. Refrigerate overnight.
• The next day, take your pork out of the refrigerator early (about 2 hours before you're ready to roast) to come up to room temperature. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F, and position a rack in the lower third of the oven, and one in the upper third.
• You're going to roast the pork and the peppers simultaneously, so wash the peppers, pat them dry, and cut them all lengthwise and deseed them (If you like your long hots really hot, skip that step!) Toss in olive oil, and sprinkle with salt. Lay out evenly on a baking sheet.
• Place the roast in the lower third of the oven, and the peppers on the rack in the upper third. Roast at 450 degrees F for 35 minutes. (Depending on how hot your oven runs, you may want to check them at the 20-25 minute mark.) Remove the peppers from the oven and set them aside. Later, you can reheat the peppers by stirring them into the hot pulled pork to rewarm them, or by putting them back in the oven in the final stretch of cooking.
• Also take the pork out of the oven at this step, and add the stock, wine, tomatoes, and bay leaves. Stir to combine. Cover the pan tightly with aluminum foil. Cook for another 15 minutes at 450 degrees F, and then reduce the oven temperature to 325 degrees F. Continue roasting the pork for 2 hours.
• Carefully remove the foil (you'll be putting it back on). Using a sharp carving knife, cut the roast into large chunks, laying them flat in the braising liquid. Re-cover with foil and cook for another 2 to 2 ½ hours, until the pork is fork tender.
• A little while before you take your pork out of the oven, it's time to prepare your broccoli rabe. In a skillet over medium-high heat, add ¼ cup of olive oil and 7 cloves chopped garlic. Let the garlic brown lightly, and add the crushed red pepper flakes, followed by the chopped broccoli rabe. Cook until wilted, and then lower the heat if needed to cook until tender--you don't want the stems to be crunchy!
• Remove the pork from the oven. Discard the bay leaves. Pull the pork in the pan with two forks, mixing everything in the juices.
• Stir in your reserved roasted peppers to rewarm them. Alternatively, you could reheat them in the oven in the last 10-15 minutes of roasting.
• To build each sandwich, grab your Italian bread/rolls, and slice them lengthwise. Lay down a healthy bed of sharp provolone slices (we went with sharp provolone from the deli counter, but if you really want to be authentic to the OG sandwich, get a wedge of super sharp provolone and cut it into rough, thick shavings), and toast to melt the cheese. Top with a generous, drippy helping of pulled pork. Spoon over the broccoli rabe, and nestle a few pieces of long green hot pepper and bell pepper inside. Top off with pepperoncini slices if desired, and eat immediately!

BITTER GREENS SALAD WITH BROCCOLI RABE PESTO, ITALIAN SAUSAGE AND FRESH MOZZARELLA

Steps:

• Prepare an ice bath and set aside.
• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Blanch the broccoli rabe until just tender, about 90 seconds, and immediately transfer to the ice bath until cooled. Drain water and squeeze out excess liquid, then place in the carafe of a food processor. Add the basil, pistachios, grated Parmesan and smashed garlic. Pulse with olive oil until still chunky but all ingredients have combined, using just enough olive oil to loosen. Add the mascarpone and pulse until just combined into the pesto. Remove the pesto from the carafe and set aside.
• Heat a medium skillet over medium heat. Add olive oil to just barely coat the skillet. Sear the sausages on all sides until cooked through and beginning to brown, about 12 minutes. Remove from the heat and set aside.
• Whisk together the red wine vinegar, minced garlic and 1/4 cup olive oil in a small bowl. Season with salt and crushed red pepper.
• Toss the arugula, endive and escarole together in a bowl with the vinaigrette. Spoon all but a few spoonfuls of the pesto on the bottom of a plate or serving dish. Top with the dressed greens, mozzarella, sausages sliced on a bias and more of the pesto. Serve!

ITALIAN PORK SANDWICH WITH BROCCOLI RABE AND SHARP PROVOLONE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F and a grill pan over medium-high heat.
• Sprinkle the pork tenderloin generously with salt. Coat the preheated grill pan with oil. Sear the tenderloin on all sides until golden brown and internal temperature reaches 145 F, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat and allow to rest for 5 to 7 minutes. Cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices.
• Toast the rolls, cut side-down, on the grill pan allowing the bread to crisp up and soak up the flavor from the pork. Remove from heat and set aside.
• Meanwhile, whisk together the mayonnaise, Parmesan, Calabrian chiles and vinegar in a small bowl.
• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Fill a large bowl with salted water and ice. Add the broccoli rabe to the boiling water and cook until just tender, about 1 minute. Remove from boiling water and drop immediately into the ice bath. Once cool, remove, drain and roughly chop.
• Coat a large skillet with oil and heat. Add the garlic and cook, stirring, until just soft, about 1 minute. Add the broccoli rabe, season with salt and saute until heated through.
• Build the sandwiches: Spread the mayonnaise-chile mixture on the toasted sides of a roll. Top the bottom of the roll with half the pork, broccoli rabe and provolone cheese. Top with top piece of the roll and transfer to a baking tray. Build the second sandwich with the remaining ingredients. Bake just until cheese melts, about 3 minutes.
• Slice each sandwich in half and serve!

HOT SAUSAGE BURGERS WITH BROCCOLI RABE AND PROVOLONE

Steps:

• In a large bowl, combine the pork, red pepper flakes, paprika, fennel, sage, onion, garlic and salt, to taste. Form the meat into 4 patties, put on a plate and coat with a drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil.
• Heat a small pot over medium-low heat and add the brown sugar, Worcestershire, vinegar, tomato sauce and black pepper, to taste. Simmer until the mixture becomes a thick steak sauce consistency, about 15 minutes.
• Add a couple inches of water to a medium skillet over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil, then salt the water and add the broccoli rabe. Cook for 5 minutes, then drain. Transfer the broccoli rabe to a cutting board and chop it into 2-inch pieces. Set aside. Return the skillet to the stove over medium heat and add 1 tablespoon of extra-virgin olive oil. Stir in the chopped garlic and the broccoli rabe. Saute for 2 minutes, then season with a few grates of nutmeg, to taste.
• Heat a drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat, add the patties and cook for 5 to 6 minutes on each side. Top the patties with a slice of provolone during the last minute of cook time and tent with foil to melt.
• Divide the broccoli rabe on the bottoms of the rolls and top with the cheesy sausage patties. Slather some of the warm sauce on the roll tops and cover the burgers. Serve the burgers on individual plates with a few chips alongside.

PORK SAUSAGE AND PROVOLONE SLIDERS

Steps:

• Drizzle a baking dish with some oil. Set aside. Preheat a double-burner cast-iron griddle over medium-high heat.
• Add the fennel seeds, ground pepper and crushed red pepper to a high-sided saute pan and toast over medium heat, about 3 minutes. Add the toasted spices to a mortar and pestle and grind until ground. Add this spice mixture to a medium bowl with the ground pork. Add the parsley and provolone to the bowl and gently but thoroughly combine. Form into 1 1/3-ounce meatballs (or 12 portions) and add to the greased baking dish. Once all the meatballs are formed, with greased hands, individually smash the meatballs in your hand and directly add to the preheated griddle. Cook until charred on both sides, about 5 minutes total. Repeat with the remaining meatballs.
• Add the cooked patties to the toasted rolls and top each patty with pickled onions. Enjoy!

GRILLED SAUSAGE SANDWICHES WITH FENNEL AND SWEET ONION

Steps:

• Uncoil sausage and cut into 4 equal lengths. Re-coil each piece into a round and secure with a skewer horizontally through coil.
• Toss together fennel, onion, oil, salt, and pepper in a bowl.
• Lightly oil grill pan and heat over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking. Arrange sausages and fennel and onion in grill pan (vegetables can be in a shallow pile). Grill, turning sausages over once and tossing vegetables occasionally, until vegetables are softened and charred, 8 to 10 minutes. Transfer vegetables to a bowl and continue to grill sausages until cooked through, 2 to 5 minutes more.
• Remove skewers and serve sausages, topped with fennel and onion, on buns.

HOT SAUSAGE BURGERS WITH BROCCOLI RABE

Steps:

• Combine the pork with the red pepper flakes, paprika, fennel, sage, granulated onion, granulated garlic, and salt. Form 4 patties and drizzle with EVOO to coat.
• Heat a small pot over medium-low heat, add the tomato sauce, brown sugar, Worcestershire, vinegar, and black pepper, then cook for 15 minutes or until thickened to steak-sauce consistency.
• Bring a couple inches of water to a boil in a medium skillet, salt the water, and cook the broccoli rabe for 5 minutes, then drain. Place the skillet back on the stove and heat the tablespoon of EVOO over medium heat. Add the chopped garlic; chop the broccoli rabe into 2-inch pieces and sauté it in the garlic and oil for 2 minutes. Season with nutmeg to taste.
• While the water comes to a boil for the broccoli rabe and the tomato sauce reduces, heat a drizzle of EVOO in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add the burgers and cook for 5 to 6 minutes on each side. Melt a slice of provolone over the patties during the last minute of cook time. Tent the pan with foil to help the cheese melt.
• To serve, pile broccoli rabe on each roll, top with a cheesy sausage patty, and set the top of the roll in place with a slather of warm sauce. Place some chips alongside.