Maple Glazed Pork Roast
For Christmas this year there were simply four of us, so it seemed a little ridiculous to cook up a turkey. My mom is allergic to sage, so I wanted to stay clear of poultry, since sage and poultry go hand in hand to me. I contemplated some beef, but both my mom and grandma enjoy their meat medium-well to well-done, which doesn’t really work for me. I decided to go with a pork roast, perhaps to redeem myself.
The last time I prepared dinner for my mom was when I was doing A Food Year, and I prepared a “Brazilian” pork roast. Though she insists it was delicious, soon after eating we’d discovered that she is allergic to ginger and spent several minutes regurgitating it into my toilet, which is never a desired outcome when cooking a meal for anyone, let alone your mama.
Ahem.
Holiday turkeys tend to be dry. So much so that television shows and movies parody Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners with hordes of jokes about the subject. I think eventually, it just became accepted that holiday turkeys just are dry, or worse, that they’re supposed to be, to ensure it’s properly cooked.
A lean pork roast and a turkey are actually quite similar. The only difference is that a turkey is much larger and therefore even more likely to dry out. There are two things that you can do to ensure that your lean white meat does not become turkey jerky.
1) Brine
Brining meat is one of those things that I’ve recommended to anyone that will listen since I first learned what it was. The general consensus to my preaching is that it either sounds complicated or is too much work. It is neither.
The simplest of brines contain only 3 ingredients: salt, sugar and water. The quantities are as easy to remember as what you put in your coffee. You need 1 cup salt and 1 cup sugar to 1 gallon (4 liters) of water. That’s it. To make the brine, simply dissolve the salt and sugar in the water. It helps to apply heat when doing this, such as boiling the water first. If so, make sure that the water is fully cooled before using the brine. You don’t want to cook the meat in the brine, after all!
To brine the meat, simply immerse the meat in the brine and leave it for 12-24 hours. The easiest way is to brine the meat overnight in the refrigerator so it is ready for the next day. When you’re ready to cook, simply discard the brine and pat dry the meat. Let the meat come to room temperature and cook as you would normally. The brine will penetrate the meat seasoning it through, and help to keep it juicy and succulent while cooking.
2) Fat
The difference between a self-basting turkey and a normal one is that it has been injected with fat. As the fat melts, it bastes the bird and helps to keep it moist and flavorful. Buying a self-basting turkey doesn’t have to be the answer. In fact, if you want to control the flavor (and type of fat) that goes into your bird, the best way is to do it at home.
Butter works well, since it is solid at room temperature, and is easily incorporated with other flavors. Use a herb compound butter, or just plain unsalted butter, and rub it generously under the skin of the turkey in any place that you wish to eat it. That’s it. The addition of fat is generally not such a concern with pork, which comes with its own layer of fat, but rubbing a pork roast with flavored oil or butter certainly doesn’t hurt any.
These two methods will increase the quality of your dinner exponentially.
Oh, and if you’ve never tasted the difference between a free-range organic turkey and a Butterball, please do so the next time you make a holiday dinner. It’s like comparing No Name brand flaked tuna to fresh ahi.
- 4 cups apple cider or juice
- 2 cups water
- 1/2 cup salt
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons freshly ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ground allspice
- 4 pound center cut pork loin, trussed
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup
- 1 sprig rosemary
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In a saucepan large enough to accommodate, combine apple cider, water, salt, sugar, pepper, cinnamon and allspice over medium heat. Stir until solids are dissolved and allow mixture to cool to room temperature.
Immerse the pork loin in the liquid, making sure it is in a container where it will be completely covered, and refrigerate overnight (at least 12 hours).
Remove the pork from the brine and discard of the remaining liquid. Allow the roast to come to room temperature.
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.
Put the pork loin on a rack, fat side up, in a roasting pan and roast uncovered until a meat thermometer registers 160 degrees and the roast is beautifully caramelized, about two hours.
Remove the pork from the oven and, using the rosemary as a brush, coat the roast with a thin glaze of maple syrup, and then top with the rosemary.
Raise heat to 450 degrees, return the pork to the oven and roast for an additional 15-20 minutes.
Once done, remove the pork from the oven and allow to rest, uncovered, for at least 20 minutes before carving.
I like to roast this along with a package of plain old breakfast sausages. The skins crisp up beautifully with the pork fat and taste absolutely delicious with maple syrup. Excellent served with baked yams and green beans.