Pork Rib Roast
It's hard to beat a center-cut rib roast of pork infused with garlic and herbs. The bones add extra flavor and juiciness to the roast and the exposed ribs make for a beautiful (and fancy) presentation. As mentioned in the segment, I prefer to buy my rib roast with the meat intact on the bone and do the trimming myself. It's not very difficult and it'll save you a few bucks a pound (and you get more meat). Plus, you can use the leftover trimmings to make sausage or throw into a stir-fry. By all means, if you'd rather have the butcher prep it for you, just asked for the rack to be trimmed (also called "Frenched").
The garlic and herb paste is full of flavor, very quick to make and can be used for all kinds of meat and poultry as well. It's a good basic recipe to have in your file. You can opt to rub the pork with the paste and go right onto the grill or into the oven. Or you can wrap it in plastic and let it marinate overnight in the refrigerator. Just be sure to take the pork out of the refrigerator and uncover it about an hour before cooking.
I like to serve this with a simple salad of in-season heirloom tomatoes and fresh basil drizzled with extra virgin olive oil, sea salt and freshly ground pepper. It also goes nicely with oven-roasted potatoes and sautéed greens, such as broccoli rabe or kale (or even a mixture of the two).
If you really want a treat, buy some of the special pork now available - heirloom breeds, such as Duroc (which we used on the segment), Berkshire (sometimes called Kurobuta), or some of the great pork featured at your local farmers' markets. I particularly like the pork being sold at Prather Ranch, located in San Francisco's ferry plaza (www.pratherranch.com). You can purchase Duroc pork from Vande Rose Farms (www.vanderosefarms.com), Preferred Meats (www.preferredmeats.com) or Bryan's Fine Foods in Corte Madera (www.bryansfinefoods.com). Berkshire pork breeds can also be purchased at Preferred Meats (http://preferredmeats.com ) or Heritage Foods USA (www.heritagefoodsusa.com.)
Garlic-Roasted Pork Rib Roast
Adapted from The Complete Meat Cookbook by Bruce Aidells and Denis Kelly Houghton-Mifflin, 1998.
Serves 6, with leftovers
If you'd like to serve more people, simply buy a full (10-rib) rack of pork. It will serve 12 people easily. Double the amount of garlic and herb paste and be advised that the cooking time will remain the same.
Garlic and Herb Paste for Pork 6 garlic cloves, peeled 1 tablespoon kosher or sea salt 1 tablespoon finely chopped sage 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh rosemary 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil 1 4-to-5 pound center cut rib roast of pork with rack of bones intact and tops trimmed (see note above)
Method:
- Using a food processor, mash the garlic and salt together. Add the herbs, pepper and olive oil and blend to form a paste. Rub the paste all over the meat and on the outside of the bones.
- If the pork was refrigerated, take it out about an hour before cooking. Preheat the oven to 450°F. Lay the roast, bone side down, on a rack in a shallow roasting pan and place it in the center of the oven. Roast for 15 minutes. Turn the heat down to 300°F and roast for about 1 ½ hours longer. The internal temperature of the roast should reach 145° to 150°F. Alternatively you can roast the pork on your grill by putting it on the spit for about 1 ½ hours, or until the internal temperature reaches 145° to 150°F. Remove the meat from the oven or grill, cover it loosely with foil and keep warm for 20 minutes before carving. Carve the meat by cutting between each bone into a chop. Enjoy!
- If you have leftovers, just cover, refrigerate and be happy. Pork roast is fantastic the next day.
Chef Bruce Aidelle's web site:
www.aidells.com
