Saturday, September 5, 2009

A Pretty Piece of Pork – Garlic-Studded, Herb-Rubbed and Perfectly Miscooked

One of the best things about understanding the best ways to cook something is the freedom to ignore them. This incredible garlic-studded, herb-rubbed, roasted pork shoulder recipe is a great example of how you can be rewarded for doing something "the wrong" way.

For cooking pork shoulder, I usually preach slowly roasting, covered, using low heat and long cooking times. The results are moist, falling apart, fork-tender succulence. Here, I wanted to play with textures a bit.

My plan was a bowl of simply prepared white beans, topped with a garlicky, crisp-edged, firm, pleasantly chewy pork, which would be then be topped with a sharp, vinegared cherry tomato and baby romaine chiffonade salad.

I wanted to concentrate the flavors of the pork and make up for any loss of moisture by pairing it with the soft beans and juicy greens. So, I cooked the pork uncovered and at a higher temperature than usual. After chilling overnight, I sliced it into thick steaks and browned them well, in olive oil.

The cold, sour salad was a perfect condiment for the rich meat and every bite of this garlic-scented pork was a joy. I hope you give the recipe a try -- I think this would make for a wonderful, end-of-summer meal. Enjoy!



Ingredients:
3 1/2 lb pork shoulder roast
6 cloves garlic, halved
salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp dried Italian herbs
1 tsp dried rosemary
cayenne to taste
cooked white beans
handful of baby romaine
handful of cherry tomatoes
3 tbsp red wine vinegar

16 comments:

Cat said...

Pork is my fav meat !

Basia said...

The shoulder in my freezer is calling to me! Ditto the tomatoes in the yard...

Eric said...

This was great! Not hard to do either - when is your book coming out??

Elisabet Alhambra said...

Do you have nice wine and kissing story you might want to share on a video to post on our site and promote your site? www.wineandkissing.com
Elisabet Alhambra

Chef John said...

i don't kiss and tell. ;-)

blogagog said...

Very interesting. Maybe you can treat a beef brisket in the same manner and end up with brisket steaks! I'm gonna find out.

MonaNeil said...

There is the recipe and cooking videos which result in plastic looking cafeteria food, and then there's Chef John's instructional, innovative, simple, and inspirational videos. Thanks for posting those kind, and keeping it real on all levels.

Unknown said...

That's crazy!!

Anonymous said...

Chef, could you recommend a sauce to go with this dish?

Chef John said...

probably a tomato sauce would fit best

Jackie J said...

Chef John,

I just made this for my partner. She said it was the best thing she's had in a long time and said it was restaurant level. I'm smiling!!! Thanks! I love your videos. You've got great stove side manor!

Jackie

jan said...

My pork roast is a 7 pounder. Can I find out what temperature you cooked the roast to so I can make this soon.

Jan

Chef John said...

It was 325 F. FYI, temps are always given in the video. Enjoy!

christhorizon94 said...

Chef John! Any recommendations on any other cuts of pork that would be good in this recipe?

Unknown said...

Was your method of preparation inspired by the way you cooked your pork belly? ( not the sauce )

christine said...

Chef John...You Are Simply Amazing!!!
I Love watching your videos, they make my husband
always ask for more....keep up with your awesome videos!