The key thing when making rillettes is to have the correct 80:20 ratio of lean meat to fat. Tell your butcher that you are making rillettes and that you need a good fatty piece of pork belly. Once you’ve separated the lean meat from the fat, weigh it, and if necessary, make up the fat content with pork back fat.
Rillettes makes a great appetiser to serve with pre-dinner drinks. Use a sourdough baguette to make small slices, or serve on larger slices as a starter. As a variation, make a salsa from chopped cornichons, pickled onions, green olives and parsley, tossed with lemon juice and extra-virgin olive oil. The main thing is to use strong salty and acidic flavours to cut through the richness of the pork fat.