Roast pork with applesauce

I love preparing the roast pork with applesauce , because that means Christmas is here. Did you know that the first known pork recipe comes from China ?

In this, the baking of a sucker, filled with dates and covered with a layer of straw and clay, is explained. I’m sure it was delicious in its day, but I think I like today’s cuisine better.

The dish that I propose is very simple to prepare, but it requires a lot of time, because for the pork to be well roasted, we must bake slowly and over low heat. Also, it is very important to be aware of the oven, because you have to spray the meat with the juice regularly. Although in the recipe I mark the roasting times, it is very important that you evaluate the state of the meat.

The pig should not be undercooked, but also not too old. Baking depends not only on the kilos, but also on the thickness of the piece. The thicker, the more it will cost to finish cooking the center of the meat.

In the applesauce you can use the spices that I propose (nutmeg and cinnamon) or, simply, crush the apples and put them on low or medium heat with a little margarine until it dissolves. If you want, you can add a little sugar, although for me the sweetness of the apple is enough.

Pork roasting time

• As a rule, the piece of pork should be roasted about 30 minutes for every ½ kg of meat. The normal thing is to start with the oven temperature at 200 ° C and, after about 15 minutes, reduce it to 180 ° C. It is important that during the roasting process, we regularly sprinkle the meat with the sauce.
• If you love the crust as much as I do, you should ask your butcher to give you the whole piece and prepare the crust for you. It has to make some cuts into strips, so that later you can serve it together with the meat. The cut of the crust is very important, because it will be the same that you use when filleting the meat. The fillet and the crust are served in a single cut.
• If when you take the meat out of the oven and start carving it, you notice that it is very pink in the center, I advise you to put it back in the oven and finish cooking it. I think there is nothing worse than eating such a delicious, poorly prepared dish. It is preferable that your guests wait a little longer with a good glass of wine, that they cannot taste such a magnificent recipe.
• If you are going to cook the crust you should cover it with aluminum foil almost to the end. Half an hour before removing the meat, remove the aluminum and modify the oven in the grill position, so that the crust is crisp. This rule does not apply to piglets!
• In our case, since we are going to roast the apples together with the pork, we will keep the initial cooking at 200 ° C, for 30 minutes. When we remove the apples, we will reduce the oven temperature to 180 ° C, as I indicated in the step by step of this delicious recipe.

Preparation of roast pork with applesauce

1. Season the piece of pork on all sides, rubbing with your hands so that the salt is perfectly impregnated. We place it in the baking dish and water it with a generous stream of oil.
2. In a saucepan or a frying pan , heat a glass of brandy, a glass of water and add a pill of chicken stock. Let it boil until the pill has melted.
3. Peel and cut the apples in a crescent shape, removing the pipes well. We place them surrounding the meat.
4. We preheat the oven to 200 ° C, with heat up and down.
5. We add the brandy sauce to the baking dish, impregnating both the meat and the apples. Cover the pork rind with aluminum foil.

Pig Baking

1. We put it in the oven for about 30 minutes or until the apples are very tender. We remove the source and remove the apples. We reserve them in a container.
2. Add two or three tablespoons of the meat sauce to the container. We reduce the oven temperature to 180 ° C. Every 15-20 minutes we will sprinkle the meat with the sauce. To do this, we remove the aluminum foil, sprinkle and cover the bark again.
3. To know the state of the meat you can enter a metal skewer.
4. If the liquid turns pink, it means that it is still raw inside and we will put it back in the oven until it is completely roasted. This process can vary depending on the size and weight of the meat.
5. If the liquid is whitish or transparent, the meat is ready and we will take it out of the oven. AND
6. In any case, you can make a cut in the center of the piece of meat, to check if it is ready or if it needs more oven time.
7. Since the piece is 2 ½ kg, the approximate oven time will be 2 and a half hours (half an hour for every 500 gr).
8. If “no” we are going to eat the crust : When the liquid comes out transparent, we remove the meat and arrange it to be served to our diners.
9. If we are going to eat the crust : When the meat is almost ready, we put the oven in the grill position and remove the aluminum foil so that the crust is toasted. This process can take about 30 minutes or until the crust is crisp and toasted.

Preparation of applesauce and final presentation of roast pork

1. To prepare the applesauce : While the meat is roasting, we will crush the apples with the sauce, until there are no pieces of fruit left.
2. Put the mixture in a saucepan and add a heaping tablespoon of margarine, cinnamon and nutmeg.
3. We will leave it on medium heat, until the margarine is dissolved. At that time, we remove it from the fire and reserve it to serve together with the meat.
4. When the meat is done inside (not pink) and the crust is toasted and crisp, we remove it from the oven.
5. Be careful, the times that I indicate are very approximate, but it is you who are going to evaluate the state of the meat. As I have already repeated several times, the roasting time will depend on the weight and thickness of the pig. We must pay attention to the roast, so that it turns out perfect!
6. In addition to the applesauce, you can prepare a mashed potato and an endive salad with pomegranate. It will surely make you look great in front of your guests. A delicacy to enjoy in good company!

You can see all the photos of the step by step in the next album.