Pork
Pork is possibly the most divine meat known to man when it comes to
crackling roast.
Shoulder can be roasted on the bone although the blade in the centre
makes it difficult to carve.
It’s usually boned out, then
rolled and tied to make a rolled roast. It has a really excellent flavour, as
meat from nearer to the head
of the pig is always sweeter and more succulent with a little more fat to keep it moist. It
has a dry skin with a reasonable layer of fat underneath, so is one of the best
joints to get good crackling from.
Pork Loin
Has good flavour. If buying
a loin of pork on the bone – which sits up like a rib of beef and looks like a
long line of pork chops – get it chined. This means that you will semi-detach
the back bone from the ribs, which can then be easily removed after cooking for
easy carving.
Leg of pork
A large joint, on the bone,
more usually boned out and divided into more manageable-sized joints. This is
one of the most commonly bought and most popular joints for roasting because of
its leanness, but is also the joint responsible for the perception that roast
pork is dry and that it’s difficult to make good crackling. A leg of pork is
one of the most expensive roasting joints but it does give nice lean, uniformly
shaped slices, and can be stuffed if you wish, prior to tying into shape.
Tips for roasting Pork
1.
Allow the meat to come to room temperature before you cook it.
2.
for good crackling: make sure the skin is very dry before you cook it. Put the
joint in the fridge, uncovered, to help it dry out. Score the skin before
roasting – this allows the fat from underneath to bubble up, crisping the skin
as it does so. Use a knife or a very sharp one and, taking care not to go
through to the flesh, make incisions 1cm apart. Sprinkle the skin liberally
with salt just before you put it into the hot oven. If salted too far in
advance it will attract moisture.
3.
Cooking time: start roasting pork at a high temperature (240°C/ fan220°C/gas 9
or as high as your oven will go) to get the heat through to the centre of the
joint, and get the crackling off to a good start. After 20 minutes, reduce the
temperature to 180°C/fan160°C/gas 4 and continue to roast for 25 minutes per
450g.
4.
Knowing when pork is cooked: pierce the centre of meat from the underside of
the joint with a fine skewer. There should be no traces of pink left in the
juices. Clear juices indicate the pork is sufficiently cooked, but that the
meat will still be beautifully moist.
5.
Always leave meat to rest before carving.
Roasted Pork
Loin (serves 8)
Ingredients
3 minced garlic cloves
15 ml. dried rosemary leafs
4 to ml 5ml each Salt and peppers to taste
1 kg. Boneless
pork loin roast
100 ml. olive oil
125 ml. white wine
Method
1. Pre-heat the oven at 175
C...
2. Crush the garlic with
rosemary, salt and pepper making a paste. Pierce the meat with a sharp knife in
several places and press the garlic paste into the opening and rub the meat
with the remaining of the mixture with the oil.
3. Place the roast into the oven, turning and basting with
the pan liquid.
4. Cook until the pork is no longer pink in the center about
1 hour .If using a meat thermometer it should read 62 to 64 C. Remove the roast
from the pan.
5. Heat the wine in the pan and stir to loosen the browned
bits of food on the bottom .Serve with the pan juice
