Juicy, Spiced Roast Pork

The Dish blends we recommend for this recipe. Dish Symphony No.1 Dish Symphony No.2 Dish Symphony No.3

Roast pork, hard to get wrong with an oven and a jar of Dish

Along with chicken steak, roast pork is the thing we would most want you to taste once you have Dish. For all that it looks impressive, the recipe is very simple. Rub it with salt and Dish, put it in the oven, and that is all there is to it. The seasoning could hardly be simpler, yet the flavour has real depth.

It is a dish that will surprise and please everyone, even when guests arrive at short notice.

Put whatever vegetables you like into the empty space in the oven while it roasts, and the table becomes colourful too.

Any of the Dish blends works well, but my own favourite is roast pork made with Dish 3.

Ingredients (serves 4)

• Pork shoulder loin, in one piece: 300~400g (pork loin also works)
• Seasoning
• Dish: 1 tsp
• Salt: the weight of the meat in grams x 0.8% (use a calculator)
• Fresh rosemary: 1 sprig (leave it out if you cannot get any)

A guide to the salt (the amount of salt really matters in this recipe, so please work it out accurately, with a calculator if you can) 150g: [150 x 0.8%] = 1.2g 200g: [200 x 0.8%] = 1.6g 250g: [250 x 0.8%] = 2g 300g: [300 x 0.8%] = 2.4g

Preparation

• If the pork shoulder loin has a thick layer of fat on one side, score it in a lattice pattern. Pierce the other sides with a fork so the seasoning penetrates, then rub salt and Dish firmly into every surface and leave it at room temperature for about 30 minutes.
  
  

If you have the time, resting it in the fridge for a day gives a deeper flavour. If you do that, take it out of the fridge an hour before you start roasting so it comes back to room temperature.

Method

1. Put the prepared pork shoulder loin into an oven preheated to 180°C and roast for 40 minutes.
   (If there is a fat side, start with it facing up. If you have rosemary, lay it on top of the meat.)
   
   
2. After 40 minutes, look inside the oven and check whether it is done.
   
   

   Q. I am not sure it is cooked through. How do I tell? These two signs are your guide When you open the oven, white moisture is bubbling gently on the surface. When you press the middle of the meat with a finger, it feels firmly springy.

3. Wrap it in foil and let it rest at room temperature for about 30 minutes, then slice it (with a well-sharpened knife) aiming for 8mm thick, and serve.
   
   

   This is a fine detail, but how you slice it changes how good it tastes. Too thin and the juices escape and the meat loses its succulence; too thick and it eats heavily. Aim for about 8mm, taking care not to go over 1cm, and you will be about right. A well-sharpened knife is the last spice.