Pork Jowl is a relatively lean cut of meat that runs outside the jawbone. Jowl is the raw ingredient in guanciale, a dry-cured meat, but is not typically sold as fresh. In addition to curing it, pork jowl may also be broiled in the oven or grilled outside. The fat content makes it a good addition as ground pork in sausage.
Our chef friend Eric Kleinman at Restaurant ‘inoteca in NYC makes a spectacular guanciale butter. With the 2.5-lb piece of jowl, combine half cup of brown sugar, half cup of kosher salt, 1 tablespoon of orange zest, 2 sprigs of rosemary and some chile flakes and black pepper. Cover the meat uniformly and keep in a cool place for at least 2 weeks. It is best to hang the meat, instead of having it rest on a surface. Eric then freezes the guanciale then chops it into small pieces and grinds it with a bit of oil and butter which makes for a luscious, unique spread bursting with flavor.