pork sholder roasted

Free-range  pork is slowly making its way onto the shelves in South Africa, or you can buy direct from farmers.  It is better than ever, thanks to the revival of traditional farming and the re-discovery of heritage breeds. This delicious slow-cooked pork shoulder, is perfect for a no-fuss Sunday lunch for a big crowd, succulently  tender, and easy to carve. Take it out of the oven before it collapses into a shreddable texture (or let it cook until it pulls to pieces for pulled pork). 

If you want to learn more about free range pork, and taste how good it is, come to one of  Wickedfood Earth Country Cooking School pork cooking classes and lunches –or subscribe to our newsletter.

Pork

 2-3T red chilli flakes

2t freshly ground black pepper

¼ cup salt

¼ cup brown sugar

4 large cloves garlic, finely chopped/grated

5+kg bone-in free-range pork shoulder (Boston butt)

1 bottle apple cider or 750ml apple juice, mixed with an equil amount of water

Vinaigrette and assembly

6-8 spring onions, finely chopped

⅓ cup cider vinegar

¼ cup coarsely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

2T  chopped fresh marjoram or oregano

2-3t  crushed red chilli flakes

¼ cup olive oil

1t sugar

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Pork

  • Mix together chilli, pepper, salt, sugar and garlic. Rub it into the pork. Place in a large bowl, cover and place in the fridge to marinade for between 12 and 24 hours.
  • Preheat oven to 150°C.
  • Place the pork in a roasting tray, add the liquid and cover with foil. Roast to an internal temperature 0f 70°C  at the thickest part of roast (meat will be very tender but not quite falling off the bone), ±7 hours. Remove from the oven and allow to  rest at least 30 minutes, covered before slicing.
  • While the meat is resting, drain the pan juices, bring to the boil and reduce to a thin gravy.

Vinaigrette

  • Whisk chopped spring onion, vinegar, parsley, marjoram, chilli, oil, sugar, and 2T water in a  bowl. Season with salt and black pepper. (Can be made ahead, cover and chill.)
  • Serve on the side with pork, crusty bread or a potato salad, and a leafy salad.

 

Wickedfood Earth meat

All the meat used in our recipes come from the Wickedfood Earth farm. All our animals completely free-range, and we do not use of routine antibiotics and growth hormones or growth stimulants. Through natural farming, our animals take, longer to reach maturity, often twice as long. Our animals muscles  work, which ensures added flavour. Our meat therefor benefits from longer cooked at lower temperatures.

Wickedfood Earth encompasses:

  • A working farm  – we have an extensive fruit and berry orchard, our vegetable gardens are planted with a wide variety of naturally grown produce, and animals including poultry, pigs, cattle and indigenous sheep.
  • A Country Cooking School, – the commercial arm, offering cooking classes for both individuals and corporate groups, which ensures that the project is sustainable; and
  • A community upliftment training project, – where we are giving back to local communities in the form of skills training, from permaculture farming practises, through to cooking and processing. Products produced during training are available for sale to clients at the Country Cooking School and Wickedfood Earth online market.

Should you wish to order pork, please contact Mike at earth@wickedfood.co.za