pork roast

Pork with Caraway and Onion

~ lk529 ~ Leave a comment

Here I am, hurriedly trying to take advantage of Treat’s nap and edit and upload photos for today’s post. As I open up my WordPress there isn’t a single draft to be found. I’m a compulsive “saver,” too, so I’m not quite sure how that happened – other than my computer died before I could plug it back in. But even still! Truth be told, I’m surprisingly taking this better than I could be. Here’s to hoping I can recreate my thoughts. Ready. Set. Go!

I can’t believe it’s taken me a good 7 months to finally crack into Rose Petal Jam: Recipes and Stories from a Summer in Poland. When Tara did a review of this spectacular cookbook, I knew I had to have it. Seriously, go read her post and you’ll be scrambling to order yourself a copy, too.

When my parents were here last month I had my mom look through the cookbook. My mom doesn’t mind cooking, but she says she hates deciding on what to cook. In fact, my blog has helped her find some new favorite dinners, and she is my biggest fan. Granted, she’s kind of obligated. Whenever she comes to visit I’ll ask what she wants for dinner and I’m always met with the same “I don’t decide” answer. Even tasked with making a decision from this Polish cookbook she wouldn’t commit to a recipe! She narrowed it down to 2 or 3 and I made the final verdict.

This Pork with Caraway and Onion (Pieczen Wieprzowa z Kminkiem) is the ultimate comfort food. Deliciously tender pork is flavored simply with salt, pepper, and caraway seeds seared and roasted underneath a pile of sweet onions.

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Before I get on to the recipe I have a few notes to make:

  • Pork neck is also called pork collar. I found my roast at a local Korean meat market.
  • I only used about half of the rub.
  • My onions didn’t get as golden as Beata’s, so I decided to caramelize them on the stove top while the meat rested. (Yum!)
  • We served this roast with mashed potatoes and sauerkraut.

Pork with Caraway and Onion (1) Sew You Think You Can Cook

Pork with Caraway and Onions

Ingredients:

  • 2 lb pork neck or pork collar
  • 2 tbsp caraway seeds
  • 1 tbsp kosher salt
  • 1/2 tbsp black pepper
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 2 onions, chopped
  • 1/2 C water

Steps:

  1. Using a paring knife, cut shallow diagonals on the surface of the pork.
  2. In a small bowl, combine caraway seeds, salt, and pepper. Rub on the pork. Let rest 30 minutes.
  3. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
  4. Heat olive oil in a Dutch oven over high heat. Sear the pork on all sides. Top with the onions and add the water. Place in the oven and roast 40-50 minutes, or until a minimum internal temperature of 150 degrees F is reached. Allow pork to rest 5-10 minutes before slicing.

Pork with Caraway and Onions Sew You Think You Can Cook

Phew! Post scheduled as Treat’s cries come out over the monitor. Perfect timing!

Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links.

#SundaySupper Month Kick-Off

~ lk529 ~ 24 Comments

I mentioned on New Year’s Day that this January is the first ever National Sunday Supper Month. It’s incredible that this movement is making a difference in families all over the country. Take the pledge this year and gather around the table as a family just once a week.

Enjoying dinner together as a family doesn’t have to be reserved for holidays or fancy meals, but I am sharing a show-stopping main course today. This Mustard-Crusted Pork Roast is what we had for Thanksgiving this year instead of turkey.

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With Treat being less than a month old we had a smaller Thanksgiving than usual. My husband’s parents drove up from Alabama to celebrate with us and the four of us enjoyed a less-than-traditional meal gathered around the table. I decided on pork instead of turkey or some other poultry because Firecracker was willingly and voluntarily eating pork. Unfortunately he wasn’t interested in the beautiful roast – I can’t even remember what he ended up eating that night.

Mustard-Crusted Pork Roast

Ingredients:

  • 1 C Kosher salt
  • 6 tbsp sugar
  • 6 tbsp gin
  • 7 cloves garlic, smashed and peeled
  • 4 bay leaves
  • 2 tbsp peppercorns
  • 1 tsp whole allspice
  • 5 1/2 – 6 1/2 lb pork French rack (I had two separate roasts)
  • 1 C panko
  • 4 tbsp butter, at room temperature
  • 2 tbsp dried parsley
  • 2 tsp dried thyme
  • 3 tbsp Dijon mustard

Steps:

  1. Brine the pork: In a pot large enough for the pork roasts (I used my stock pot) combine salt, sugar, gin, garlic, bay leaves, peppercorns, and allspice with 4 C water over medium heat, stirring, until both the salt and sugar are dissolved. Add 8 C of ice and stir until brine is cool.
  2. Pierce the pork with a paring knife all over. Place in the cooled brine and refrigerate overnight.
  3. Place a roasting pan on the lowest level in the oven. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Remove the pork from the brine and pat dry, allow pork to come to room temperature while the oven and roasting pan preheat. Bring 3 C of the brine (and spices) to a boil.
  4. Pour hot brine in the bottom of the preheated roasting pan. Place the pork roast(s) on the roasting rack fat-side up. Roast 40 minutes.
  5. Make the crust: In the bowl of a food processor pulse the panko, butter, parsley, and thyme with a pinch of salt until combined.
  6. Remove the pork from the oven. Brush the roast(s) with the Dijon mustard and top with the panko mixture. Return pork to the oven and roast another 50 minutes.
  7. Increase the oven temperature to 425 degrees F and roast until the pork reaches an internal temperature of 140 degrees F, about 10 minutes. Allow pork to rest 20 minutes before carving.

*This recipe is modified from Food Network Magazine, Dec 2014*

Mustard-Crusted Pork Roast for #SundaySupper from Sew You Think You Can Cook

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Strawberry Pork Roast

~ lk529 ~ 4 Comments

I had planned to make this beautiful pork roulade for Easter supper, but it just never happened. After getting back to the house from church it was almost 1pm and I knew there wasn’t any wiggle room in making my SRC pizza! So by 3:30 we were full and without any company we were content to have waffles for dinner around 8.

The only pork loin Publix had left was a 5lb bone-in so the thought of having to debone this beast wasn’t exactly calling my name either. But I did pull out the meat cleaver (first time I’ve used that monster!), halved it, and placed one half in the freezer for another day and the other in the fridge to figure out something more simple to do with during the week.

While perusing recipes I decided on this Marmalade Pork Loin, but I didn’t have orange marmalade or rosemary (that reminds me to add it to my grocery list!). I followed Linda’s cooking method and used strawberry jam and parsley. The result was a perfect spring dish – might I even suggest it for Mother’s Day? I served it with mashed potatoes and fresh corn on the cob.

Strawberry Pork Roast

Ingredients:

  • 2.5 lb pork roast
  • 1 tsp parsley
  • 2 tbsp vegetable oil
  • 1/2 C strawberry jam
  • 1 cinnamon stick
  • 1 tbsp corn starch

Steps:

  1. Rub pork with salt, pepper, and parsley.
  2. In a dutch oven, heat vegetable oil over medium-high heat. Sear pork for 2-3 minutes on all sides.
  3. Add 1 C water to the pot with the strawberry jam. Bring to a boil, add the cinnamon stick. Lower the heat to medium low and simmer for 55 minutes.
  4. Turn pork over and cook another 45-50 minutes, or until pork is cooked through.
  5. Remove pork from dutch oven and wrap in foil. Discard cinnamon stick.
  6. Whisk together cornstarch with 2 tbsp water. Pour into the dutch oven to create a gravy. Bring to a boil and allow to cook until you’re desired thickness is reached.

*This recipe is modified from Linda at http://www.rotinrice.com/2013/08/marmalade-pork-loin/*

Strawberry Pork Roast