Entree: Italy – Friuli-Venezia Giulia – Brovada e Muset (Braised fermented turnips in grape must accompanied by boiled or smoked pork knuckle)

Serving Size: 4

Approximate Time

Prep 25 min

Cook 1 hr 45 min

Total 2 hrs 10 min

Ingredients

- 1 muset (smoked or cured pork knuckle), approx. 2 lb (900 g)
- 2 lb (900 g) brovada (fermented turnips), rinsed and coarsely chopped
- 1 1/2 cups (360 ml) red wine or grape must (vinaccia)
- 1 cup (240 ml) water or additional wine
- 2 tbsp (30 ml) lard or unsalted butter (or olive oil for lighter option)
- 1 medium onion, sliced (about 6 oz / 170 g)
- 3 cloves garlic, crushed (about 0.5 oz / 15 g)
- 2 bay leaves
- 6 whole black peppercorns
- 3 whole cloves
- 1 tsp (5 g) coarse salt, or to taste
- 1 tsp (4 g) sugar (optional, to balance acidity)
- 1.5 lb (700 g) potatoes, peeled and halved for boiling (to serve) or 1 cup (170 g) coarse polenta, cooked according to package directions
- Fresh parsley for garnish

Instructions

1. Prepare the muset: place the muset in a large pot and cover with water. Bring to a gentle simmer and poach for 45–60 minutes to remove excess salt and begin tenderizing if very salty or heavily smoked; drain and set aside. For a smoked muset, you may skip the initial poach and proceed to braising.
2. Sauté aromatics: in a large braising pan or Dutch oven, melt lard or butter over medium heat. Add sliced onion and cook until soft and translucent, about 6–8 minutes. Add crushed garlic and cook 1 minute more.
3. Braise brovada and muset: add the rinsed brovada to the pan with bay leaves, peppercorns, cloves, and sugar if using. Nestle the muset on top, pour in red wine (or grape must) and water so the mixture is about two-thirds submerged. Bring to a gentle simmer, cover, and braise on low heat for 1 to 1 1/2 hours, turning the muset once, until the pork is tender and flavors are blended.
4. Cook potatoes (or polenta): while the braise finishes, boil the potatoes in salted water until tender, about 20–25 minutes; drain and keep warm. Alternatively, prepare polenta per package instructions.
5. Finish and serve: remove muset and slice or carve into portions. Adjust braising liquid seasoning with salt as needed. Serve slices of muset with a generous helping of braised brovada and boiled potatoes (or polenta), spooning some braising liquid over the plate and garnishing with chopped parsley.