When I am having troubles with inspiration on what to make for supper, I’ll ask Jonathan to bring a random package of meat in from the freezer. This time, he brought in a boneless pork loin roast. We put it in the fridge to thaw overnight, so I had a few hours to decide what I wanted to do with it.
Typically I like to use the Crock Pot, but since I wasn’t roasting any veggies with this one, I decided to use the oven. I have a Corning French White baking dish that we received for a wedding gift 24 years ago. It is the perfect size for most roasts.
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. It is a good idea to spray the baking dish with non-stick spray. Unwrapping the roast is a little like unwrapping a Christmas present. You know that you are going to love what’s inside, you just don’t know exactly what it looks like. This one did not disappoint!
The layer of fat on top of this roast was beautiful! It wasn’t too thick, yet it covered nearly the whole top. When you are shopping for roasts, look for one with a layer of fat like this one. It helps keep the meat moist while it is roasting, yet isn’t so thick that your seasonings can’t flavor the meat.
Speaking of seasonings, I decided to go old school with a twist. I don’t know what is tradition in your area, but around this Scandinavian area, we don’t get too wild with the spice.
I love the Hy-Vee brand of dry onion soup mix. It is inexpensive, and has a great flavor. Emeril’s Vegetable Stock has a good flavor, and isn’t too salty. The red wine may break some rules, but I really have no clue what wine is supposed to go with what meat. I just use what I like…as you should! If you don’t like wine, use apple juice.
Pour the liquids over the roast to get the surface moist. I used just under a cup of liquid total. After the liquid is in, sprinkle the dry onion soup mix over the top. It should look like this:
Cover the whole thing with aluminum foil, and place on the middle rack of the oven.
This roast was still slightly frozen when I put it in, so I set the timer for 2 hours. I took it out about 5 minutes before the timer went off, and let it rest while still covered. If you are using a meat thermometer that you leave in while it is cooking, set your timer for 145 degrees. This is what it looked like after the rest period:
I’m always a little nervous when I make the first cut into a roast. I don’t want to mess it up with a bad slicing job! I should mention – it is okay for the center to have a bit of pink in it if the meat reached 145 degrees. The first few slices revealed a slight pink, and lots of juice!
I sliced the roast into 3 ounce portions, or one slice per serving. If you are weight conscious – as I am – one serving of lean pork roast is an excellent source of protein.
I went traditional with our sides. We love Bird’s Eye Baby Sweet Peas, mashed potatoes, and homemade gravy. One final photo before Jonathan and I devoured our supper. The meat was moist, and tender…sooo good!
I hope you are able to try a similar recipe soon!
