Roast Loin of Pork with Herbs and Garlic
Rowley Leigh's recipe for roast loin of pork with herbs and garlic, perfect for outdoor dining. Timing is crucial to avoid overcooking. The butcher should chine the rack, cutting through the ribs while leaving them attached to the meat, and score it well.
Rowley Leigh's recipe for roast loin of pork with herbs and garlic, perfect for outdoor dining. Timing is crucial to avoid overcooking. The butcher should chine the rack, cutting through the ribs while leaving them attached to the meat, and score it well.
- Carbohydrate 4.26493333333333 g
- Cholesterol 0 mg
- Fat 0.126 g
- Fiber 1.12466664632161 g
- Protein 0.552533333333333 g
- Saturated Fat 0.01686 g
- Serving Size 1 1 Serving (41g)
- Sodium 1.11333333333333 mg
- Sugar 3.14026668701172 g
- Trans Fat 0.0652733333333333 g
- Calories 14 calories
Step-by-step
- Peel the garlic cloves and split them in half. With a small, sharp knife, make two small incisions between the ribs about 5cm apart and insert the garlic.
- Finely grate the zest of the lemon and mix with the herbs, a teaspoon of sea salt and the same of milled black pepper. Stuff this mixture all along the channel between the ribs and the backbone (you may need to make it deeper for the purpose).
- Season with more salt and pepper all the facets of the joint except the skin. This should be rubbed vigorously with the cut face of the lemon, so that it is dripping in juice. Now rub the skin really well with plenty of fine table salt.
- Place the pork skin side up in a baking tray and put it in an oven preheated to 220C/gas mark 7 for 20 minutes. Turn the tray around in the oven so that the crackling gets an even heat and cook for a further 20 minutes.
- At this point, pour out all the fat from the tray. Turn the oven down to 190C/gas mark 5 and leave the meat to cook for another 20 minutes. By this time the crackling should be set hard (if not, sprinkle it with a little salt and give the meat 10 minutes longer in a hotter oven).
- Remove the joint from the oven, take a long, sharp knife and remove all the crackling in one piece. Season the exposed fat on top of the loin, pour the white wine into the baking tray and put back in the oven at 220C/gas mark 7 for 20 minutes. Test the meat with a meat thermometer or a skewer: it should be hot in the centre (75C). Remove from the tin.
- Scrape up the juices in the tin, diluting them with a little water (or stock) - the intention is to provide only a little juice with the meat, not a full-scale gravy. Let the meat rest for 10 minutes, then carve it straight down parallel to the ribs, providing alternate slices on and off the bone. Serve with generous pieces of crackling, some potatoes fried in the pork fat and a sharp little cos lettuce salad.
Why is the outer layer scorching before the center reaches a safe temperature? Controlling heat transfer across a large muscle cut requires distinct thermal phases, starting at a blistering 220C to trigger the Maillard reaction on the skin before dropping to 190C to protect the interior proteins from seizing. Strategic placement of garlic slivers deep within incisions near the bone allows aromatic compounds to diffuse directly into dense muscle fibers during the initial high-heat phase. Citrus juice applied strictly to the exterior skin alters surface pH to dehydrate the outer tissue, producing proper crispness without steaming the meat underneath.
Cold leftover slices from this roast behave exceptionally well when repurposed into pressed sandwiches the following afternoon. Dense pork loin holds its structural integrity under pressure, making it ideal for slicing razor thin after resting for ten minutes. Pair those chilled fragments with sharp mustards and pickles to cut through the residual rendered fat left clinging to the protein fibers.
Acidity from white wine deglazed in the roasting pan dissolves caramelized fond left behind by the herbs and garlic, creating a sharp pan jus rather than a heavy roux-thickened sauce. Scraping those browned proteins loose with a wooden spoon immediately after removing the meat extracts maximum depth without requiring additional stock.
