Roast pork with crushed grapes: An easy centerpiece
“It’s astonishing how heat, on its own, can turn simple ingredients into a meal,” said Diana Henry in From the Oven to the Table (Mitchell Beazley). That’s the magic of roasting—a technique that can be a cook’s best friend on weekend nights when you want to gather people together for a satisfying meal but you have little time for prep.
The “gorgeously autumnal” roast pork below requires a bit of preplanning, because it needs to be seasoned in advance. But “when you cook using simple methods, like roasting, the interest often comes from the ingredients you add,” and here the grapes, garlic, and Marsala wine add big flavors.
Use a roasting pan that’s heavy enough to allow you to reduce the cooking juices on the stovetop shortly before you serve the roast. You’ll get the best results if the roast and grapes fit fairly snugly in the pan, because if there’s too much room, the juices will evaporate and can even burn. ½ tbsp sea salt flakes
½ tbsp black peppercorns Leaves from 3 rosemary sprigs 1 tbsp juniper berries
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil 18 oz black seedless grapes 1½ cups dry Marsala
Unroll pork and lay it on a board, flesh side up. Make incisions all over the meat with a sharp knife, then push slivers of garlic into the incisions. Crush salt, peppercorns, rosemary leaves, and juniper berries roughly in a mortar, then stir in olive oil. Rub seasoning mix into pork, again on the flesh side, pushing bits inside the incisions. Put pork in a dish, cover, and refrigerate overnight.
The next day, remove pork from refrigerator and allow it to come to room temperature. Preheat oven to 400. Roll loin firmly, keeping as much of the seasoning inside as you can, then tie it at intervals with kitchen string. Put it in a heavy roasting pan and season with salt and pepper. Roast for 25 minutes, then reduce oven temperature to 375.
Pull half the grapes from their stems, cut the rest of the bunch into sprigs, and add them all to roasting pan with 1 cup Marsala. Continue roasting for 60 minutes. Test meat for doneness: The juices should run clear when the flesh is pierced to the center with a metal skewer.
Remove pork from pan, along with the grapes that are on sprigs, and put them on a warmed serving platter. Cover and allow to rest for 15 minutes. Set roasting pan over medium heat, add remaining Marsala, and crush the loose grapes into the juices. Boil until you have a slightly syrupy mixture. Present the pork with the Marsala sauce and sprigs of roasted grapes. Serves 6.