On our last trip to Costco, we brought home a kindofa huge pork roast, which I cut in half before bagging and freezing. I was thinking mebbe a Thai Pork Stew would be nice, and perhaps one of those Bacon and Honey Mustard Roasts.
Then, I got to thinking…
One of my new favorite ways to make a steak is to season it with garlic, salt and pepper, then to fry it with a bit of vinegar(!) – don’t knock it ’til you’ve tried it.
How would a similarly treated roast pork work out?
Of course, I’d want a little something more than just vinegar and seasonings for a roast. Fortunately, I had a half jar of my last batch of plum sauce in the fridge, and I thought that’d do nicely.
INGREDIENTS
•1 boneless roast pork
•2 cloves garlic, minced
•1/4 cup plum sauce*
•1/2 cup white vinegar
•4 bay leaves
•1/2 tsp dried thyme
•Seasoned salt
•Tellicherry pepper
*If you don’t happen to have your own plum sauce on hand, no worries; use prepared duck sauce, or cherry or apricot preserves.
Preheat oven to 325º.
Pierce the pork roast on all sides with a long, two pronged meat fork, then add seasoned salt and Tellicherry pepper on all sides, rubbing it into the roast as you go.
Place the bay leaves on the bottom of a roasting pan and place the seasoned roast, fat side up, on top.
Combine the plum sauce, vinegar, garlic, and thyme in a 2 cup measure, then pour over the pork in the roasting pan. Spoon the runoff up and over the pork to cover all sides.
Roast, uncovered, for 35 minutes, then baste with the pan juices and return to the oven, still uncovered, for another 15 minutes.
Baste again, then cover and continue roasting for another hour, basting after 30 minutes, or until an instant read thermometer poked into the thickest part of the roast reads 140º.
Remove from the oven and let rest, still covered, for 30 minutes before slicing.
Nice roast pork – and pretty simple to toss together!
We had ours with small roasted yellow potatoes, some of my favorite cole slaw on the side, and a drizzle of honey mustard – tho’ in truth, the pork has enough flavor and is moist and juicy enough that it really doesn’t need any condiments.
Note 1: if you’re fretting about all that white vinegar, by all means swap out cider or red wine or your own personal fave.
Note 2: home made plum sauce is devilishly simple to make – and w-a-a-a-y more better than anything you’ll find on the shelves at your local market – but, first, you’ll need to make a batch of plum jam.
Which, ermmm, is also wicked simple to make and can at home – this batch was made using red plums – golden plums will give you a yellow jam (and plum sauce) – tho’ the flavor will be basically the same. As a nice bonus, the jam is also rather good on toast!