Pork Roast Two Ways

Over the holidays, I had occasion to perfect a couple of roast pork recipes I've been working on for a couple of months.  At first blush, one of these will resemble my Savory Pulled Pork recipe, but this one is a bit different.  This dish calls for a smaller, de-boned roast and isn't meant to be a substitute for barbecued pulled pork.  Both worked well, and in particular the rib roast was delicious with the New Year's tradition of Black Eye Peas with Tomato Relish from a previous recipe found here. And I also found that the tomato relish worked well as an accoutrements for the shoulder blade roast.

Pork Rib Roast with Pan Shallot Gravy

For this dish, you want to get your butcher to trim out the rib roast "French style," which means the bones remain on the roast, and are trimmed out of all meat, making a beautiful presentation for what essentially is the prime ribs of pork. Like any good roast, the best way to tell when it is done is to use a meat thermometer.

Ingredients

6-8 rib pork rib roast
2 tbsp rubbed sage
2 tbsp dried thyme
2 tbsp dried crushed rosemary
2 tbsp garlic powder
2 tbsp paprika
1 tbsp salt
1 tbsp black pepper
3 tbsp olive oil, plus more for coating the pan
1 small shallot, finely diced
1 tbsp powdered mustard (like, Coleman's)
1 small "lunchbox" serving (about a cup) natural (no sugar added) apple sauce (like, Mott's)
2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
4 tbsp dry white wine
2 tbsp heavy cream
2 tbsp unsalted butter

The Recipe

Combine the sage, thyme, rosemary, garlic powder, paprika, salt and pepper in a small mixing bowl and whisk to combine.  Then, add the olive oil to form a paste. Rub the herb paste into every nook and crevasse of the pork roast.  Allow the roast to sit un-refrigerated for an hour to warm up a bit and soak in the flavors. Place the rib roast in a shallow roasting pan coated with a little olive oil.

Pre-heat the oven to 500 degrees, then put in your roast.  Cook for fifteen minutes, then turn the oven temperature down to 325 degrees and continue to roast to an internal temperature of 145 degrees.  This will take 1 to 1-1/2 hours depending on the size of your roast.

Remove the roast from the oven and the roasting pan, tent with foil and allow it to rest while you make the gravy.

Place the roasting pan over medium high stove heat, and saute the shallots in the rendered pork fat.  Add powdered mustard, and mix into the fat and shallots.  De-glaze the pan with the apple sauce, vinegar and white wine.  Add the cream and allow the mixture to reduce a little.  Finish with the butter.

Carve chops off of the roast and top with the shallot pan gravy.

Braised Pork Shoulder Roast

For this recipe, I accompanied it with the same tomato relish that I created for my New Year's black eye pea recipe mentioned above or found here. Any number of toppings or relishes would be great with this recipe, including chutney or chow-chow.

Ingredients

2-3 lb pork shoulder blade roast, bone removed.
3-4 pepperoncini or banana peppers, stems and seeds removed and finely diced
1 tbsp minced fresh garlic
1 tsp ginger powder
1 tsp white pepper
1/2 of 14.5 oz can of petite diced tomatoes (like, Hunts), drained
2 tsp Splenda
2 tsp red wine vinegar
2 tsp olive oil
1/4 cup port wine
1/2 cup chicken stock

The Recipe

Mix the peppers, garlic, tomatoes, ginger, Splenda, pepper and vinegar in a small mixing bowl and combine well.  Then smear all over the roast.

Pre-heat the oven to 500 degrees.  Place the roast in a shallow roasting pan.  Cook the roast for twenty minutes.  Then, add the port wine and chicken stock to the pan, cover the roast and the pan completely with aluminum foil. Reduce the heat to 325 degrees and cook for another two and half hours.

Remove the roast from the oven and from the braising liquid and allow to sit covered for 15 minutes.  You can discard the braising liquid or spoon off the fat and use as a natural gravy.  The roast will fall apart.  You can serve in chunks or shredded with two forks, and top with the tomato relish, like I did.