“Someone has observed that a pig resembles a saint in that he is more honored after death than during his lifetime.” – The Joy of Cooking, 1975
The events of the last several weeks notwithstanding, a pig is a pig, lipstick or not, and personally, I wouldn’t have it any other way. Pork is one of the most versatile meats available to man having been domesticated as early as 5000 BC and is the most widely eaten meat in the world. It’s said that you can eat everything but the oink.
When I was growing up, my parents used to pickle pigs feet (we didn’t call them trotters) and make big batches of sweet or spicy Italian sausage. I also remember going to a farm where livestock was slaughtered, yielding fresh meats, some of which would end up in the big chest freezer down in the basement, lying in wait for use in some future culinary treat.
I’ve written before about shopping at our local farmer’s markets; we’re fortunate to have so much good, fresh food available to us in our community. This past weekend was no exception as Renée and I made our way to South Russell to see what could be had. To me, half the fun of going to the farmer’s market is seeing what’s available and making up menus as you go. You just have to be careful you don’t arrive at the market too hungry.
Here’s what we brought home:
- Beefsteak tomatoes
- Lamb brats from Great American Lamb Company
- A 3 1/2 pound pork shoulder roast from the Wayne Cattle Company
-
Sunshine Marmalade (made from yellow tomatoes) from Herb Thyme - Some gorgeous red onions
- Fresh picked peaches
- Sweet corn
- Fresh picked sweet basil
- A bone for Harley
I wanted to try something different with the roast and found a recipe for Cuban Roast Pork Shoulder in my Dean & DeLuca cookbook. I adapted the recipe based what I had in the house and my time frame, which brings me to the thing I most enjoy about cooking: you can take a recipe and play with it–kind of like interpreting a piece of music–to make it your own.
Two things make recipes like this so flavorful: the rub and the marinade. The key is to Infuse the roast with flavors that compliment but don’t overpower the taste of the meat. Marinating with acid-based liquids can also help to break down the structure of the meat to produce tenderness, but as Shirley Corriher points out, you have to choose your marinade ingredients wisely depending upon what it is you’re marinating. This recipe has a terrific mixture of herbs and spices that marry well with the citrus and the garlic to fill your home with delicious aromas and fill your plate with a delectable treat.
Here’s the ingredient list:
- 3 T finely minced garlic
- 1 t grated orange zest
- 1 T dried oregano
- 1 T ground cumin
- 1 T salt
- 1 t ground black pepper
- 1 cup thinly sliced onion
- 1/3 cup orange juice
- 1/4 cup lime juice
- 1/2 cup dry sherry
Here’s what I modified:
- dry chopped garlic instead of minced garlic
- 2/3 cup orange juice (no lime juice or oranges on hand!)
- dry vermouth instead of sherry
I began by combining the garlic, orange juice, onions, and vermouth and let it sit while I prepared the roast for the oven. Make small slits all over the roast with a paring knife and let it rest to come to room temperature. Combine the oregano, cumin, salt, and black pepper with a little OJ to make a paste. Strain the garlic and onions from the marinade, remove and set aside the onions and add the garlic to the paste, then smear it all over the roast. Next, I placed the pasted roast in a large Ziploc bag along with the onions and the marinade, sealed it and let it sit for about an hour. Normally, you’d want to do this in the refrigerator overnight and baste it several times. We wanted to eat at halftime of the football game, so no overnight for you my little pork shoulder!
After removing the shoulder from the marinade, pat dry and strain the marinade. I set the onions aside for sautéing later. Place in a roasting pan and roast at 325 basting every 30 minutes with the marinade until internal temperature reaches 170 degrees. Cuban roasts are traditionally well-done, so don’t worry if it seems to be taking a long time to get to 170. After removing the roast from the oven, be sure to let it rest for 15 minutes before carving. Mine was served with fresh sweet corn, a fresh tomato salad with balsamic vinegar, a little oil, and fresh basil, 7-grain bread for dipping in the salad juices, the sautéed onions, and fresh peach shortcake for dessert. Yum.
By the way, the crusty texture you see in the pic is from the garlic; they were good sized bits, but weren’t overpowering. Even though I didn’t have time to marinate the roast the way I would have liked, it still turned out juicy, nicely flavored from the paste while still tasting like good pork, and was delicious cold on sandwiches the next day.
No lipstick needed!
Next to fresh tomatoes, fresh peaches are something I could eat every day.
pig photo by Brent and MariLynn
Welcome back! If you enjoyed this post, please consider leaving a comment and be sure to browse around and see what else is cookin'! Have you subscribed to my RSS feed yet? Thanks for stopping back!
