Yes, it means getting up at 7am to get it in the oven in time for Sunday lunch. But aside from the early start and occasionally throwing stuff in the oven, it’s the very essence of simplicity. And the end result is beautifully, succulently delicious, with crispy crackling too!
- 2 kg boneless pork shoulder
- Salt and pepper
- 2 tbsp finely chopped fresh rosemary and sage
- 5 large waxy potatoes, cut into chunky pieces
- 5 unpeeled cloves of garlic
- 7 medium shallots, peeled and left whole
- 3 carrots, peeled and cut into large pieces
- 2 tart apples, peeled and cored and quartered
- 1 heaped tbsp plain flour
- 175 ml white wine or marsala
- 250 ml chicken stock
- Pre-heat oven to 140C fan (160C)
- Score the skin with a sharp knife, cutting into the fat but not as far as the meat
- Using your hands, rub in the salt, pepper and herbs all over the joint, brushing off any on the surface of the fat and pressing the mixture into the slits in the skin. Sprinkle the leftovers in the bottom of the tin under the pork
- Put the meat into a roasting tin with plenty of extra space and roast for 4 hours without touching
- After 4 hours, put the potatoes into the tin around the pork and turn over in the fat
- After a further hour, put in the garlic, shallots and carrots and mix them in gently
- Cook for 30 mins and then add the apples, popping them into any gaps
- Cook for a final 30 mins
- By this time the meat will be tender, flaking with a fork. Remove the roasting tin from the oven. Then remove the meat and veg from the tin and keep it warm to rest
- If the skin isn’t 100% crispy yet, pop under a medium grill for a few mins until it’s really crunchy and crispy
- To make gravy, pour off all but 1 tbsp of fat from the roasting pan, keeping all the juices and savoury brown bits IN
- Put the pan over a burner on the stove on a medium heat
- Stir the flour into the fat in the pan with a rubber spatula, cooking for a couple of mins
- Add the wine and cook until it is reduced by half
- Then add the stock and scrape off any bits of meat and vegetable on the bottom of the pan
- Taste for seasoning and serve on a platter in all its resplendent glory, surrounded by the beautiful veg
Sophie cooks 