Bombette — Pork Rolls Grilled over Charcoal

Ingredients

• 600 g pork capocollo or shoulder, sliced 3–4 mm thick
• For the filling
• 120 g Caciocavallo stagionato or Canestrato Pugliese, cut into grape-sized cubes
• 150 g pork mince, loosely mixed, not packed
• 10 g flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
• 1 tsp black pepper, freshly ground
• 1 tsp fine salt
• 30 g lardo, cut into thin slivers; optional

Method

1. 1
   Light the charcoal well in advance — olive wood charcoal is correct for this dish. The coals are ready when they are fully ashed over and glow deep red with no black centres; hold a hand 10 cm above the grate and it should be uncomfortable within two seconds.
2. 2
   Combine the pork mince, chopped parsley, black pepper, and salt in a bowl. Mix loosely — the mixture should remain open-textured, not compacted.
3. 3
   Lay one slice of capocollo or shoulder flat. Place a grape-sized cube of Caciocavallo or Canestrato at one end, top it with a small amount of the pork-mince mixture and, if using, a sliver of lardo. The cheese cube must remain small — a piece that is too large will expand under heat and burst the roll.
4. 4
   Roll the slice tightly around the filling, compressing as you go so that the finished bombetta is a dense, compact parcel. Secure at both ends with a toothpick. The roll must hold its shape under pressure from your fingers — if it gives or unravels, it will open on the grill and the cheese will be lost. This is where the dish lives or dies.
5. 5
   Place the bombette on the grate over hot charcoal. Grill for 3–4 minutes per side. The exterior is done when it is golden-brown with defined grill marks and slightly charred at the edges; the pork fat will caramelise and the smell of rendered pork and olive wood smoke will be present.
6. 6
   Remove the bombette from the grill when a thread of melted cheese is visible at the seam or either end of the roll. Serve immediately, with rough bread.