Photos: Geir Egil Bergjord

My first trip to Italy was an eye-opening revelation. I experienced food in a whole new way, without any fancy tricks. One of the first dishes I was served was pork loin stuffed with yellow peppers and spinach, slow roasted in the oven. Here is my version of the same dish, cooked on the grill.

There is something “Christmas-y” about this dish, but it works great throughout the cold winter season. It´s even pretty darned good in the middle of the summer. Enjoy!

Italian Christmas Pork Roast

1 whole boneless pork butt (ca. 4-5 lbs), butterflied to about 1″ thick

2 bunches of fresh spinach, rinsed and cleaned

2 yellow bell peppers, cleaned and cut into strips

6 garlic cloves, finely chopped

Some fresh herbs (rosemary, sage and/or parsley)

Sea ​​salt and ground black pepper

Balsamic vinegar (the best you can afford)

String

1. Boil some water in a pot.
2. Place the spinach in the water and let it boil for a few seconds.
3. Pour the spinach into a colander and rinse with cold water.
4. Lay the meat on a work surface. Sprinkle salt and pepper on the top side of the meat.
5. Place bell pepper strips, spinach, garlic and herbs in a strip in the middle of the meat.
6. Roll up the meat as tightly as possible and wrap with twine.
7. Sprinkle additional salt and pepper on the outside of the meat.
8. Place the roast on indirect heat. Insert the probe of a digital thermometer into the thickest part of the roast.
9. Replace the lid on the grill and cook until the internal temperature of the meat is 67-68° C.
10. Remove the roast from the grill and place on a cutting board. Let it rest for 15-20 minutes. You might want to place a loose aluminum foil “tent” over the meat to keep it warm.
11. Cut the meat into 2 cm thick slices.
12. Place 2 slices on each plate and drizzle a few drops of balsamic vinegar around the dish.

Serve with pasta, risotto or potatoes.

Italiensk julegris

1 hel buklist, nakke eller slagside av svin

2 håndfuller fersk spinat, skylte og renset for de tykkeste stilkene

2 gule paprika, renset og skåret i strimler

6 hvitløkfedd, finhakkede

litt friske urter (rosmarin, salvie og/eller persille)

havsalt og kvernet sort pepper

balsamicoeddik (den beste du har råd til)

hyssing

1. Kok opp litt vann i en gryte.
2. Ha spinaten i vannet og la den koke bare i noen sekunder.
3. Hell spinaten over i et dørslag og skyll med kaldt vann.
4. Dryss salt og pepper på kjøttet.
5. Legg paprikastrimler, spinat, hvitløk og urter i en stripe på midten av kjøttet. Hvis du bruker nakke må du skjære kjøttet slik at du får et bredt, flatt stykke.
6. Rull opp ”steken” i en rullade og surr med hyssing.
7. Ha mer salt og pepper på hele utsiden av kjøttet.
8. Brun steken overalt på den varme delen av grillen.
9. Flytt steken over til den kjølige delen av grillen og stek til den er 90° C i midten.
10. Ta steken av grillen og legg den på et skjærebrett. La den hvile i 10 minutter.
11. Skjær steken i 2 cm tykke skiver.
12. Legg 2 skiver på hver tallerken og hell noen dråper balsamicoeddik rundt.

Server med pasta, risotto eller poteter.