Set It And Forget It Roast Pork Shoulder Recipes

PORK ROAST WITH CRISPY PORK CRACKLING

Steps:

• Dry skin: Pat the skin dry with paper towels. If time permits, leave in the fridge uncovered overnight (even 1 hr helps). If not, pat extra well.
• Preheat oven to 220°C/430°F (200°C fan).
• Season flesh: Sprinkle pork flesh with 1 1/2 tsp salt, all the pepper and all fennel seeds and 1 tbsp olive oil. Rub into flesh, right into all the crevices and cracks.
• Salt skin: Flip pork, drizzle skin with 1 tsp oil, then rub all over with fingers. Sprinkle all over with remaining 1 1/2 tsp salt, taking care to get even coverage. Un-salted patches will not become bubbly crackling, it will be a hard flat sheet.
• Garlic & onion bed: Place halved garlic bulbs and onion in roasting pan. Place pork skin side up on top of them.
• Wine: Carefully pour wine into the pan, being sure not to wet the skin. Transfer to oven.
• Lower oven: Immediately turn oven down to 160°C/320°F (140°C fan).
• Slow roast: Roast for 2 1/2 hours.
• Level at 1 1/2 hours: Check pork after 1 1/2 hours to see if the pork is warped and the skin's overall surface is significantly unlevelled. If so, adjust to make the skin surface as level as possible using balls of foil and moving large dislodged pork pieces to the side (key tip for crispy crackling, Note 3). Then return to oven for the remaining 1 hour.
• Check pan & salt on skin: If pan is drying out, add some water. If there are bald patches on the skin without salt (eg it fell off), spray lightly with oil spray (or brush lightly with oil) then sprinkle with salt. (Remember, salt = bubbly skin!)
• Increase heat: Turn oven up to 250°C/485°F (all oven types), or as high as it will go if your oven won't go this high.
• Make skin crisp: Return pork to oven for 30 minutes, rotating pan as needed, until skin is crisp and bubbly all over. If needed, use foil patches, secured with water soaked toothpicks, to cover parts that are done and keep crisping up remaining patches.
• Rest: Transfer pork to serving platter, tent loosely with foil (don't worry, crackling stays super-crisp) and rest for 20 minutes (stays warm up to 1 hour). Then slice using a serrated knife.
• Serve with gravy. Don't pour gravy over crackling - pour it off to the side! See note for reheating.

ROAST PORK SHOULDER

Steps:

• Make the rub by combining the ingredients in a small bowl or use a mortar and pestle to make it into a paste.
• Prep the pork shoulder by patting it dry on all sides with paper towels and trim excess fat. With a very sharp knife, score the fat side with a 1/2" crosshatch pattern going all the way through the fat down to the skin.
• Apply the rub marinade on all sides and either ideally cover and refrigerate overnight or let it sit out for a few hours to marinate.
• Preheat the oven to a low 275° F / 135° C.
• Place the roast on a double foil-lined rimmed baking sheet or roasting pan. You can also use a wire rack to set the roast on so the air circulates all the way around.
• When the internal temperature of the roast reaches 175° F, remove it from the oven. Use an instant-read probe thermometer to verify.
• Rest uncovered for 30 minutes or longer. The temperature will rise another 5 to 10 degrees.
• Optional sear for even crispier skin: If your roast didn't get super crispy, you can sear it in a hot oven for a short period of time. After resting the pork shoulder for 30 minutes or longer, preheat your oven to 450° F. Place the roast back in the oven to sear. This will require rotating every 5 minutes or so until it is seared on all sides: 10 to 20 minutes total depending on your oven.
• Serve it by slicing or shredding. Serve warm.

SET-IT-AND-FORGET-IT ROAST PORK SHOULDER

Steps:

• Finely grind peppercorns, juniper berries, and coriander seeds in spice mill or with mortar and pestle; transfer to a small bowl and mix in salt and sugar.
• Set blade on a box cutter to about 1/3" (or use a very sharp paring knife or X-Acto knife) and cut long parallel lines into the skin of pork shoulder, spacing about 3/4" apart. You want to cut completely through the fat, getting as close to the meat as possible without slicing into it. Then, using a pair of kitchen shears, snip between rows to create a diamond-shape pattern, spacing about 3/4" apart. Cutting a crosshatch design into the fat will help it cook out and allow the salt and spices to penetrate the meat.
• Rub entire shoulder with spice mixture, covering any exposed meat and pushing into cuts in fat. Try to get the spices into the fatty layer and not on the surface of the skin, where they may burn as the shoulder roasts. Make sure to use all of the spices, even though it may seem like a lot. Wrap shoulder tightly with plastic and chill at least 3 hours and up to 3 days.
• Place a rack in lower third of oven; preheat to 225°F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with 2 layers of heavy-duty foil (be generous with the foil unless you really enjoy scrubbing pots and pans after Thanksgiving dinner). Place rosemary sprigs and garlic in the center of baking sheet and set a wire rack on top. Set pork shoulder on rack and transfer to oven. Pour wine and 2 cups water into baking sheet and roast shoulder until meat is pulling away from the bone and skin is very dark, 9-10 hours (overnight is great).
• Let pork shoulder sit uncovered at room temperature until ready to serve (at least 30 minutes and up to 5 hours).
• Just before serving, reheat roast in a 350°F-400°F oven to soften fat and warm the surface of the roast (but don't let it take on any more color), 5-10 minutes.
• Serve warm with cranberry sauce, cornichons, and mustard.

SIMPLE ROASTED PORK SHOULDER

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
• In a small bowl, mix together the olive oil, garlic, salt and pepper. Using a pastry brush, spread the mixture all over the pork shoulder.
• Set the meat on a rack set into a roasting pan. Roast for 20 minutes, and then reduce the heat to 325 degrees F. Continue to cook until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the shoulder reads 185 degrees F, about 4 hours. Remove the pork from the oven and let stand until cool enough to handle, about 30 minutes.

SET-IT-AND-FORGET-IT POT ROAST

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F.
• With the tip of a paring knife, make ten 3/4-inch-deep slits on each side of the roast. Insert a garlic clove half into each slit. Season the meat all over with the salt and pepper. Heat the oil in a Dutch oven over medium heat until shimmering. Gently set the roast in it and sear all over, turning with tongs, until well browned, about 14 minutes. Remove the meat from the pan to a plate.
• Add the carrots, onions and bay leaves to the pan and cook for 2 minutes. Add the wine and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer, stirring up the crispy bits at the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon, until the wine is reduced by half. Return the roast to the pot, laying it on top of the vegetables. Add enough chicken stock to cover the roast by three-quarters. Cover and roast for 1 hour 30 minutes.
• Flip the meat over and add the potatoes. Cover and continue cooking until the potatoes are tender but not mushy and the meat is fall-apart tender, 45 minutes more, depending on the thickness of the roast.
• Remove the roast and vegetables to a platter. Season the meat with additional salt. Pour the sauce into a gravy boat and pass with the meat and vegetables.

MEAL PREP SLOW-ROASTED PORK SHOULDER

Steps:

• Put a large ovenproof Dutch oven, without the lid, into the oven and preheat to 425 degrees F.
• Meanwhile, rub the pork all over with 2 tablespoons salt and 1 teaspoon pepper.
• Once the oven is preheated, carefully remove the Dutch oven and add the pork to it fat-side down. Roast until golden all over, 45 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 300 degrees F and flip the pork so it is fat-side up. Continue to roast until the internal temperature is about 175 degrees F, about 3 hours. Cover the pot with the lid and continue to cook until the internal temperature is 195 to 200 degrees F, about another 30 minutes. Remove the pot from the oven, uncover and let rest until the meat is cool enough to handle, about 30 minutes.
• Transfer the pork to a cutting board. Skim off the fat from the liquid at the bottom of the pot with a spoon or ladle and discard it. Reserve the liquid for re-warming the meat.
• Pull the meat from the bone and discard it. The part of the meat that was in the bottom of the pot and cooks in the liquid is perfect for shredding with two forks. The top part that roasts for most of the cooking time should be sliced in to 1/2-inch pieces for browning in other recipes Refrigerate in airtight containers for up to 5 days.

EASY ROAST PORK SHOULDER

Steps:

• Heat the oven to 240C/220C fan/gas 9. Remove any packaging from the pork, retaining the string, and pat dry with kitchen paper - you want the skin to be as dry as possible. Score deep cuts into the skin in a diamond pattern using a sharp knife (you want to cut into the fat). If the skin is already scored, make sure each cut is dry and can be easily opened. Rub the oil into the skin, rubbing it well into each cut, then sprinkle the salt over in an even layer, rubbing this into the cuts, too.
• Scatter the onion slices over the base of a large roasting tin and sit the pork joint on top. Roast for 20-30 mins, or until the skin starts to blister and bubble. Put the kettle on to boil.
• Pour half a kettle of boiling water around the joint to cover the base of the tin, ensuring it doesn't drip onto the skin. Reduce the oven temperature to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Roast for another 2 hrs 30 mins, or until the meat under the skin is very tender when pressed. There's a lot of fat in pork shoulder, so cooking at a low temperature this way ensures the meat doesn't dry out - if needed, it can cook for up to 3 hrs.
• Turn the oven back up to 220C/220C fan/gas 7 and continue to roast the pork for 20-25 mins until the skin is very crisp and has started to harden - it should feel brittle when tapped with a knife. If needed, cook for 10 mins more to achieve this. Remove the pork from the oven and rest for 20 mins in the tin, loosely covering with foil. Remove the crackling in large pieces, then break into smaller chunks. Carve the meat and serve alongside the crackling and your favourite sides.