Crispy crackling pork with sweet onions and plums

SERVES 6-8 PREP AND COOK TIME 2 HOURS 30 MINUTES A 3kg piece of pork will yield lots of leftovers for toasties, sandwiches and salads for the days following Christmas.

250g Italian-style bread (pane di casa)

100g thinly sliced pancetta,

chopped coarsely

2 cloves garlic, peeled

100g butter, melted

¼ cup (35g) dried cranberries

1 cup coarsely chopped fresh

flat-leaf parsley

2 tablespoons sage leaves

3kg boneless pork loin, rind on (see

Fran’s tips)

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

3 teaspoons coarse cooking salt

salad leaves, to serve SWEET ONIONS AND PLUMS

4 large (800g) red onions

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

4 large (880g) plums or peaches,

halved

1 tablespoon caster sugar

1 tablespoon sage leaves 1 Trim some of the hard crust from the bread and discard (or eat with lashings of butter!); tear the remaining bread into pieces. Place bread in a food processor and process until coarse crumbs. Add pancetta and garlic; pulse until combined. Add butter, cranberries, parsley and sage; pulse until just combined. Season with salt and freshly ground pepper. 2 Preheat oven to 250°C (230°C fan-forced). Using a sharp knife or Stanley knife, score pork rind by making shallow cuts at 1cm intervals. Place pork on a board, rind-side down; open out to form one large piece. 3 Press about half the stuffing mixture along centre of the pork; roll the pork to enclose filling. Tie securely with kitchen string at 2cm intervals. Rub the pork rind with oil and salt; place on a wire rack in a large shallow roasting pan. 4 Roast the pork, uncovered, for about 30 minutes or until the rind is browned and blistered, rotating halfway to allow even browning. Reduce the heat to 180°C (160°C fan-forced). Roast pork for a further 1 hour 30 minutes or until internal temperature reaches 70°C.

5 SWEET ONIONS AND PLUMS

Meanwhile, trim top and root end slightly from onions to allow them to sit flat. Cut onions in half crossways. Place on a small oven tray lined with baking paper; drizzle with oil and season with sea salt flakes and freshly ground pepper. Roast with the pork for 30 minutes. Sprinkle the remaining stuffing mixture over and around the onions. Roast for a further 15 minutes or until browned. Remove from oven; cover to keep warm. While the pork is resting, increase oven temperature to 200°C (180°C fan-forced). Place plums, cut-side up, on a small oven tray lined with baking paper. Sprinkle with sugar and sage leaves. Roast for 10 minutes or until tender. 6 Serve pork with Sweet Onions and Plums and salad leaves. Not suitable to freeze. Butter suitable to microwave.