Chew on This | Roast Loin of Pork with Garlic

I know the scuttlebutt is all about the bird as we approach Turkey Day-but some families, like ours, have always enjoyed two mains...turkey, of course, and a baked ham or a succulent roast loin of pork.

Pork is such a sweet meat...there is nothing better than a slice of roasted pork that has been infused with garlic, salt , and oil.  When my husband came to me as a newlywed, he brought his father's recipe for roasted pork, and it's still our favorite way to enjoy this sweet meat and it has graced our holiday tables ever since.

The Man is going to share is father's recipe-this is what you will need:


Pork loin roast (bone-in or boneless), garlic, Kosher salt, ground pepper, onion, whole grain Dijon mustard, olive oil, chicken broth. If you love sweet potatoes, bake them right along with the pork.

I always wipe the loin with a paper towel.  Cut garlic cloves in half and place pork loin in a
large roasting pan.  With a sharp knife, make a deep slits about  every 1 1/2 to 2 " all the way down the center of the loin.  If loin is bone-in, make slits between the ribs.

With you index finger, push a piece of garlic as far down in the hole as possible.  Repeat inserting the garlic all the way down the loin.

Pour salt into each hole and...

push the salt down onto the garlic.  Repeat all the way down the loin.

Rub the whole loin with olive oil and...

spread whole grain Dijon mustard over the top and then...

sprinkle with ground pepper.  Lay thinly sliced onions-in two rows-down the top of the
loin and you're ready to head to the oven.  Bake at 350º F for about 1 1/2 hours or until
the internal temperature reaches 160º F.  If you're having potatoes, they can be arranged around the roast. 

After 1 hour of baking, add chicken broth to the roasting pan.  Stir to combine the broth with the pan juices.  Baste the roast and the potatoes with the pan juices..

Looking beautiful..moist and full of flavor...from snout to tail...pork is a sweet meat and our holiday table wouldn't be complete without it.
 

Mimi

Here is the recipe:

Roast Loin of Pork with Garlic

1  5 pound pork loin, bone in
5-6  garlic cloves with have been cut in half-if large cut into fourths
    Kosher salt-to pour into garlic holes
1  large onion, thinly sliced into rounds
2 T olive oil
1 T whole grain Dijon mustard
salt and ground pepper
1  cup chicken broth


Preheat oven to 350º F.

Wipe the pork loin with a paper towel.  With a sharp knife, punch a hole into the meat about half way down, between the ribs.  If using boneless, make holes about every 1 1/2 to 2".  Push a garlic clove deep into the hole and pour Kosher salt into hole to fill.  Repeat this down the length of the loin.

Pour 2T of olive oil on the loin and gently rub it all over.   Spread 1 T of whole grain Dijon mustard over the top to of the loin.  Sprinkle just little salt and ground pepper to taste.
Place very thinly sliced raw onion rings down the top of the loin.  Make two rows.

Place the loin in a roasting pan.  If baking sweet potatoes or oven roasted potatoes, add them to the pan now.  Bake at 350º F for 1 1/2 hours or until  internal temperature reaches 160º F. (Some cooks say remove from oven when temp. reaches 145º F...I think the pork feels like rubber-sorta gummy-so I go for 160º F!)

When you have about 45 minutes of baking to go, add 1 cup of chicken broth.  Stir around
the pan to blend all the goody that is stuck to the bottom.  Baste the roast now and one
to 2 more times before it reaches 160º F.

Transfer the finished pork to a serving dish and pour the drippings over the top. (You can leave the onions on the top or remove if they are blackened-your choice.)