“In my first book, the French Brasserie Cookbook, I included a recipe for a classic duck rillettes, but in this book I wanted to bring a different and more modern character to this popular dish by replacing the herbs with spices such as star anise. It brings an exotic yet delicate scent that goes perfectly with the pork. Use the whole spice rather than ground as the latter just doesn’t have the same depth of flavour.”
Serves | 4
Preparation time | 10 minutes, plus 6–12 hours marinating and at least 24 hours chilling
Cooking Time | 4 hours
Ingredients
1.2kg/2lb10oz pork shoulder, diced
60g/2¼oz/¼ cup sea salt
2 tsp coriander seeds
2 star anise
1.5kg/3lb 5oz goose fat
leaves from 2 coriander sprigs
freshly ground black pepper
Toast or warm crusty bread, to serve
Method
Put the pork, salt, half the coriander seeds and 1 star anise in a large bowl and season with pepper. Turn everything until combined, then cover with cling film and leave to marinate in the fridge for 6–12 hours. The longer you leave the pork to marinate, the better the flavour will be.
After the pork has marinated, preheat the oven to 140°C/275°F/gas 1. Rinse the marinade off the pork, reserving the star anise, and pat dry with kitchen paper.
Melt the goose fat in a large, flameproof casserole dish over a low heat. Add the pork and turn until well coated, then transfer the casserole dish to the oven and cook, uncovered, for 4 hours until the meat falls apart when prodded with a fork. Strain the pork through a fine sieve, reserving the fat, and put in a bowl. Shred the pork using two forks, then add about 125ml/4fl oz/½ cup of the cooking fat to moisten.
Transfer the shredded pork to a sealable jar or small earthenware dish and press down lightly. Pour enough of the cooking fat over the top to cover the pork and seal it, then add the reserved star anise and scatter with the remaining coriander seeds and coriander leaves. (If there is any remaining goose fat, it can be put in a jar and kept for other uses, such as roasting potatoes.) Cover with a lid or baking paper and chill for at least 24 hours before serving to allow the flavours to mingle. Serve with warm crusty bread.