Ginger Pork Pot Roast (with Pineapple Ginger Compote)
- Total Time: 2 Hours 30 Minutes
Description
I’ve recently discovered the pork picnic cut – and it’s so perfect for braising! Who knew? I saw this on Roger Mooking’s Food Network Show, Everyday Exotic, I made it straight away and then immediately wished I’d made a much larger portion. This recipe is easily adjusted to the size of your Dutch Oven, and as with most braising recipes, I actually prefer to make it the day ahead, cool it overnight, skim off the fat and proceed with finishing dinner. I also prefer the pork picnic cut that looks like a giant ham steak (instead of a whole shoulder), I simply find it easier to work with – enjoy!
Ingredients
Ginger Pork Pot Roast
3–4 lbs. pork picnic shoulder, bone-in (in 1 or 2 pieces, cut to fit your Dutch Oven)
canola oil, salt and freshly ground pepper for searing
1 large onion, peeled and quartered
4 cloves of garlic, smashed
1, 3-inch piece of ginger, smashed
3 cinnamon sticks
1/2 t. cumin
2 bay leaves
1 T. EACH black peppercorns AND coriander seeds
3, 250 mL bottles of The Great Jamaican Old Tyme Ginger Beer – or ~3 c. of your favorite ginger beer
1 or 2 c. good chicken stock
2 T. molasses
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 350, season your pork with salt and pepper and heat up a bit of oil over high heat in your Dutch Oven. Sear the pork on all sides – I needed 2 sets of tongs, and it took a good 10 minutes – remove the pork to a plate and set it aside.
Turn the heat down to medium and add in the onion, garlic and ginger – big chunks are fine, you’re going to strain the liquid later. Cook all for a few minutes until they soften and start to brown, then add in all of the spices and cook for a couple of minutes until the aroma really starts to hit you. Pour in the ginger beer and chicken stock (use as much as you need, depending on your Dutch Oven size), cook and stir and make sure to scrape up all of the brown bits, then add the molasses, bring it to a simmer, add the pork back in, put the lid on and put it into the oven.
I braised mine for about 2 1/2 hours – and I turned it over half way through. Cook until the pork is tender. This is where I stopped on my day before planning – once the pork is cool enough to handle, just use your hands to tear it up into chunks, and while it’s still warm, remove all of the fat. Strain the liquid, and ideally, take the time to boil it and reduce it so that it thickens slightly – and then refrigerate it all until eating day. It’s best if the pork and juice are stored together, the fat will congeal and will be easy to remove the next day.
Day of serving – scrape off all of the fat and discard, and spoon the pork – and now probably jellied juice – into a proper sized pot and heat gently until hot all the way through. Even though I had reduced the liquid, ours was still quite thin and we didn’t mind one bit. We enjoyed our pork over couscous and green onion and with some of the pineapple compote listed below.
Pineapple Ginger Compote
2 T. butter – 1 fresh pineapple, peeled, cored and diced – 1 T. sugar
2 T. fresh ginger, minced
Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat, add the pineapple, sugar and a pinch of salt and saute for about 5 minutes until the juices are released and it’s all warmed through. Remove the skillet from the heat, stir in the ginger and serve.
- Category: Pork, Make-ahead, Pineapple
- Method: Bake
