Receta Citrus Brined Pork Loin and Corn Souffle Stuffed Tomatoes
Bon Appetit's Citrus-Brined Pork LoinJeff's Corn Souffle Stuffed Tomatoes
Peach MustardToday, I want to share two great dinner party recipes that we served this summer to
great applause. One is a pork loin from
Bon Appetit that originally called for using the backyard grill. It was a great success with a flavorful crust
and meat that was tender to the bone.
Later in the season, when we were in the midst of a monsoon, I took it
inside and roasted it to perfection in the oven. So I think we can get away with calling this
a year ‘round option for a great bone-in pork roast. And if you’re one of those grillers who will
stand outside in all but a blizzard, you can grill on. With it, comes a recipe for peach mustard, a cross between a chutney and a mustard sauce. But the third component of the menu makes this meal far more seasonal. It calls for using those still wonderful
field tomatoes that are everywhere around here now, along with the last of the
season’s corn. Put them together and this might be the perfect meal to serve
this very weekend.
A
great bone-in pork loin is one of the great dinner party bargains you can
buy. Pork has never achieved the status
of a great beef roast or steak for that matter. So its price has made it a favorite of thrifty
entertainers everywhere. Because today’s
Pork has had its fat content reduced to virtually nothing, the meat benefits
from brining, a technique in which both flavor and tenderness are added. In this case, if you are planning
to entertain on Saturday night, the full benefit of the brine needs 24 hours to
develop. In an absolute pinch, you can
cut this down to 12 hours. But unless
you plan to rise at dawn the day of your dinner party, set aside some time the
day before and brine away. The Peach
Mustard can made the day of or you can make it ahead and add the chives at the
last minute.
Next
up, the Corn Soufflé Stuffed Tomatoes. I
was so pleased when our friend Jeff sent along this great recipe. Jeff and his partner, Mark, are great friends
of ours in St. Barth. I say “in St.
Barth” because despite the fact that they live right over the Pennsylvania
state line in New Hope, we never see them anywhere but on the island! And we’ve been friends for years! Jeff wrote that he’d sent the recipe along after
reading that I’m not a great corn on the cob fan. Here, he wrote “This makes
use of the season’s two greatest vegetables.”
He says that he’s “had the recipe since the late 80s beut can’t remember
where it came from. Probably an old
Gourmet or Bon Appetit”. I did some
sleuthing at Epicurious.com, generally a repository of old Gourmet recipes and
those of Bon Appetit, and came up empty handed.
But wherever this came from originally, I cannot thank Jeff enough for
it because it not only tastes wonderful but it looks so beautiful especially
when you are serving ‘the other white meat’ which has no color at all. Here are the recipes:
Recipe for Citrus-Brined Pork Loin with Peach Mustard from Bon Appetit Serves 8. Takes at least 12 hours
marinating time, 1 hour coming to room temperatute, 45 to 60 minutes of cooking
time, 20 minutes to rest.
For the Citrus-Thyme
Brine:
1/2
medium onion, chopped
2
- garlic cloves, peeled, crushed
- 1/4
- cup (packed) light brown sugar
- 1
- teaspoon coriander seeds
- 1
- teaspoon black peppercorns
- 1
- 5-pound center-cut bone-in pork loin, chine bone removed
- 1
- tablespoon coriander seeds
- 1
- tablespoon fennel seeds
- 1/4
- cup (packed) light brown sugar
- 2
- tablespoons kosher salt
- 1
- tablespoon coarsely ground black pepper
- Vegetable
- oil (for grilling)
- Mortar
- and pestle or spice mill
- Make the Citrus-Thyme
- Brine:
- Bring onion, garlic, bay
- leaf, salt, brown sugar, coriander seeds, fennel seeds, peppercorns, and 2 cups
- water to a boil in a medium saucepan. Reduce heat and simmer, stirring, until
salt and sugar are dissolved. Remove from heat and add 2 cups cold water.
Transfer brine to a large heatproof bowl or jar. Squeeze orange and lemon juice
into brine and add citrus halves and thyme. Chill until cool.
Place pork in a large re-sealable
plastic bag and add brine. Seal bag, pressing out air, and chill at least 12
hours. (I could not find a plastic big enough but I forged on, putting the
roast and the brine in a large pyrex dish.
The pork was almost submerged and I flipped it several times to make
sure that every inch of the roast was brined.)
Do ahead: Brine can be
made 2 days ahead; cover and keep chilled. Pork can be brined 24 hours ahead;
keep chilled.
Remove pork from brine,
brushing off any spices. Let stand at room temperature 1 hour before grilling.
Toast coriander and
fennel seeds in a small skillet over medium heat, tossing occasionally, until
fragrant, about 2 minutes. Let cool, then finely grind in mortar and pestle or
spice mill; combine in a small bowl with brown sugar, salt, pepper, and
paprika.
Prepare grill for 2-zone
heat (for a charcoal grill, bank coals on 1 side of grill; for a gas grill,
leave 1 or 2 burners off) and oil grate. Pat pork dry and rub all over with dry
rub. Grill over direct heat, bone side up, until lightly charred, about 5
minutes. Turn pork and grill, bone side down, until lightly charred, about 5
minutes more.
Transfer pork to cooler
side of grill, bone side up; cover grill. Grill pork, turning occasionally,
until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the center of loin registers
145°, 45–60 minutes. (The internal temperature of grill should be 400°; add
more charcoal or adjust heat as needed.)
If you are using a regular oven, and if you are fortunate enough to have
a probe, use that and just close the door.
Otherwise, roast for 30 minutes and check temperature until you achieve
the desired 145 degree internal temperature.
Transfer pork to a
cutting board, tent loosely with foil, and let rest 20 minutes. Cut loin from
ribs, and slice loin; cut between ribs. Serve with Peach Mustard.
Do
ahead: Dry rub can be made 1 day ahead. Store airtight at room temperature.
Makes 1 ¼ cups. Choose a very ripe—even bruised peach for
this recipe.
1
large ripe peach
1
teaspoon apple cider vinegar
1/2
teaspoon kosher salt, plus more
1/3
cup whole grain mustard
1
tablespoon finely chopped fresh chives
Freshly
ground black pepper
Using the tip of a paring
knife, score an X in the bottom of peach. Cook in a small saucepan of boiling
water just until skin begins to peel back where cut, about 30 seconds. Transfer
to a bowl of ice water; let cool. Peel and coarsely chop.
Bring peach, sugar,
vinegar, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 2 tablespoons water to a boil in a small
saucepan. Reduce heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, until peach is very
soft and mixture thickens slightly, 5–8 minutes. Pulse in a blender until
chunky (do not purée). Transfer to a medium bowl; let cool.
Mix in
Dijon and whole grain mustards and chives; season with salt and pepper.
Recipe for Corn Soufflé Stuffed Tomatoes Courtesy of Jeff W.
This corn in this recipe will fill
4-6 tomatoes depending on size. Up the
recipe with the number of tomatoes. If you are making the pork roast for 8, you
will want 8 stuffed tomatoes. Takes 20
minutes Prep Time and 45 minutes in the oven.
4-6
med. to large local fresh tomatoes
Corn
(4 ears) cut off the cob from fresh local (preferably white) corn
Minced
parsley (optional; I never use it for this)
Cut
tops off tomatoes and scoop out insides. (I found a melon baller was perfect
for this task.) Salt
and pepper the insides of each tomato, turn over and drain on paper towel for
20 mins.
Beat
eggs. Mix
in flour, sugar and baking powder
Blend
in half and half. Stir
in corn and melted butter
Season
with salt and pepper.
Pour
corn mixture into tomatoes. Bake for 45 mins in a 350 degree oven. Put any
extra soufflé in an oven proof dish and cook alongside the tomatoes.
Note: Keep the corn soufflé mixture just below the top
of the tomatoes. It puffs up and will spill over if filled to the brim.