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Cider Braised Pork Roast

Pork Shoulder Roast (aka Boston Butt) is an inexpensive cut of meat. Rubbing the meat, 18-24 hours in advance, with a brown sugar–salt mixture and refrigerating it overnight seasons the meat and helps keep it juicy. The following day, the roast is seared and then braised with apple cider, onion, garlic, thyme and bay leaves for about 3 hours. While the roast is resting, the braising liquid is used to make an incredible gravy with a few additional ingredients. Apple wedges seared in flavorful pork fat is the perfect condiment to compliment this dish. The pork turned out super moist and fork tender. The gravy is liquid gold!
Author Debby - www.AFeastfortheEyes.net

Equipment

  • All-Purpose Whisks

Ingredients

  • 1 5- to 6-pound bone-in pork butt roast
  • ¼ cup packed brown sugar
  • Kosher salt and pepper
  • 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
  • 1 onion halved and sliced thin
  • 6 garlic cloves smashed and peeled
  • 2 cups apple cider divided
  • 6 sprigs fresh thyme
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 1 cinnamon stick
  • 2 Braeburn apples cored and cut into 8 wedges each
  • ¼ cup apple butter
  • 1 tablespoon cornstarch
  • 1 tablespoon cider vinegar

Instructions

  • Using sharp knife, trim fat cap on roast to 1/4 inch. Cut 1-inch crosshatch pattern, 1/16 inch deep, in fat cap.
    Place roast on large sheet of plastic wrap.
    Combine sugar and 1/4 cup salt in bowl and rub mixture over entire roast and into slits. Wrap roast tightly in double layer of plastic, place on plate, and refrigerate for 18 to 24 hours.
  • Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 275 degrees.
    Unwrap roast and pat dry with paper towels, brushing away any excess salt mixture from surface. Season roast with pepper.
  • Heat oil in Dutch oven over medium-high heat until just smoking.
    Sear roast until well browned on all sides, about 3 minutes per side. Turn roast fat side up. Scatter onion and garlic around roast and cook until fragrant and beginning to brown, about 2 minutes.
    Add 1 3/4 cups cider, thyme sprigs, bay leaves, and cinnamon stick and bring to simmer. Cover, transfer to oven, and braise until fork slips easily in and out of meat and meat registers 190 degrees, 2 1/4 to 2 3/4 hours.
  • Transfer roast to carving board, tent with aluminum foil, and let rest for 30 minutes.
    Strain braising liquid through fine-mesh strainer into fat separator; discard solids and let liquid settle for at least 5 minutes.
  • About 10 minutes before roast is done resting, wipe out pot with paper towels.
    Spoon 1 1/2 tablespoons of clear, separated fat from top of fat separator into now-empty pot and heat over medium-high heat until shimmering.
    Season apples with salt and pepper. Space apples evenly in pot, cut side down, and cook until well browned on both cut sides, about 3 minutes per side.
    Transfer to platter and tent with foil.
  • Wipe out pot with paper towels.
    Return 2 cups defatted braising liquid to now-empty pot and bring to boil over high heat. Whisk in apple butter until incorporated.
    Whisk cornstarch and remaining 1/4 cup cider together in bowl and add to pot.
    Return to boil and cook until thickened, about 1 minute. Off heat, add vinegar and season with salt and pepper to taste. Cover sauce and keep warm.
  • To carve roast, cut around inverted T-shaped bone until it can be pulled free from roast (use clean dish towel to grasp bone if necessary).
    Slice pork and transfer to serving platter with apples.
    Pour 1 cup sauce over pork and apples. Serve, passing remaining sauce at table.

Notes

Plan ahead: This roast needs to cure for 18 to 24 hours before cooking. If you can’t find Braeburn apples, substitute Jonagold. NOTE: I couldn't find either type of apples, so I used Gala apples and they were just fine.
 
If you don’t have a fat separator, strain the liquid through a fine-mesh strainer into a medium bowl in step 4 and wait for it to settle.
 
Recipe source: Cook's Country  December / January 2016 issue