FOR THE NOODLES
500g thin noodles
70g red pepper, cut into cubes
5g lemon zest
50g spring onion, finely chopped
80g tomato (flesh only), cut into cubes
15g spearmint, finely chopped
50g olive oil
5g salt
1g pepper
FOR THE PORK
100g olive oil
150g onion, sliced into half-moons
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
1 kg pork neck, cut in medium-sized cubes, fat removed
500g vegetable stock
400g crushed tomatoes
100 g dry red wine
100g tomato paste
1 cinnamon stick
10 cloves
2 bay leaves
10 allspice berries
5g fresh marjoram, finely chopped
15g salt
2g pepper
TO SERVE
12 marjoram sprigs
PREPARE THE PORK
Heat the olive oil in a cooking pan and sauté the onion and garlic until tender. Add the bay leaves and cinnamon stick, and then add the meat and brown on all sides. Douse with the wine and allow the alcohol to evaporate. Dissolve the tomato paste into the stock and add to the pan, together with the crushed tomatoes. Wrap the allspice and cloves in a piece of tulle fabric and add to the pan. Cook on low heat for 45 minutes, then add the salt, pepper and marjoram, and cook for a further 15 minutes. Remove pan from heat, and take out the tulle with the spices as well as the cinnamon stick.
PREPARE THE NOODLES
Boil the noodles in salted water for 6 minutes. Drain, run under cold water, add some olive oil and toss. Heat the olive oil and sauté the spring onion, pepper and tomato until tender. Add the noodles and toss, then add the lemon zest, salt, pepper and spearmint. Pour over some liquid from the pan where the meat cooked, and toss again.
SERVE
Serve the noodles and top with the meat. Pour over some sauce from the meat and garnish with two marjoram sprigs.
Wine pairing – Master sommelier Konstantinos Lazarakis
This is a dish of classic flavors, substituting pork for beef. Tomato has a central role in this composition; its aromas and acidity dominate the dish’s aromatic palate and structure. A red wine of the Mavro Kalavritino variety has the right acidity and fruitiness to balance the tomato, and the pork’s protein content will mellow the variety’s distinctive tannins.
(Ideally, you should serve the same wine as the one you used in the recipe, or a similar one.)
