I went to a cooking class at Rialto on Sunday. It was great. Jody Adams is the chef and she is a very interesting woman, besides being an amazing chef. The topic was braising and she prepared 3 dishes, then you sit down and enjoy all the dishes with a wine pairing. Not a bad way to spend a Sunday!
So, she made a braised pork belly on a citrus salad that was so amazing, I have been dreaming about it. No sheeps for me falling asleep this week, pork belly ….pork belly….It will be on the menu for my Fall Dinner party next year.
Yesterday I had a 3 pound pork loin roast (Under $6) and I decided I would braise it. Braising is such a great way to add flavor to any cut of meat or some veggies (think leeks). It is a moist cooking method that creates a luscious sauce (ok, now you know why I love braising!).
This the basic method: Sear the braising subject. Remove and carmelize braising veg in same pot. Add liquid (beer, wine, stock, combo), return braising subject to pot. Add water if needed so liquid comes a third of the way up, cover and finish in oven for hours. Take out and enjoy the luscious sauce with braising liquid. You can also finish braise in a crock pot but you must sear the subject and veg first, that is the main flavoring.
- 3 Pound Pork Roast (Loin or Butt are both fine)
- 2 Tbsp Olive Oil
- Salt & Pepper
- 2 Celery stalks chopped bite size
- 4 Carrots, peeled and chopped bite size
- 2 Onions, chopped bite size
- 2 Shallots, chopped bite size
- 3 Garlic Cloves, smashed
- 2 Tbsp Tomato Paste
- 1.5 cups White Wine
- 1 Bay leaf
- 1 Tsp Marjoram
- 1 Tsp Italian Seasoning
- Chicken Broth
- Heat oven to 350.
- Heat Olive oil in a dutch oven or roasting pan until hot. Season the pork and add to the pan skin side down. Cook for 5-7 minutes until it gets golden brown. Turn and cook for 5 more minutes. Remove pork and set aside.
- To the pan add the onions and shallots. Salt & Pepper to taste and cook for 5 minutes.
- Add the garlic, celery and carrots and cook for 5 minutes.
- Add the tomato paste and stirring quickly cook for 2 minutes until you can start to smell the tomatoes.
- Add the wine. Reduce by half, about 4-5 minutes.
- Add the bay leaf, marjoram and italian seasonings to pan. Stir well. Put the pork and any juices back into the pan. Pour enough chicken broth so that it covers the pork ⅓ of the way up the side. Place parchment paper on top of pan, then cover with pan cover, or aluminum foil if you don't have a cover for your pan.
- Cook in the oven for 3.5-4 hours until the roast is very tender and cooked through. Be sure to check roast at about 2 hours and add water if liquid is reducing too much. Make sure the liquid is ⅓ way up the roast.
- Slice the roast and you can serve the sauce with the veg, or strain the veg and just serve the sauce.
I promised Nate I would make a new pork dish this week- will keep you posted on how this comes out!!