Although I am not so keen on cabbage, this recipe appealed to me because of its interesting use of apples. My trusted food-dar was right, the compotée turned out to be brilliant - melting and sweet with just enough sharpness. The pork loved the braising, it was tender and moist with a gorgeous caramelised flavour pleasing all palates. I defated the succulent sauce and poured it liberally over the food. An absolute Yum.
Braised pork with red cabbage and apple compotée
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Recipe by: Inspired by 2 recipes from Elle a Table, March 2006 and Jan 2007 Busy:20 min, Total prep time: 2 hours (plus at least one hour marinating time) Serves: 6 |
Cook the pork for 15 min in boiling water, drain and pat dry.
Mix the honey, soy sauce, pepper and mustard. Rub on the meat and marinate in the fridge of at least one hour.
Cook the pork (1H30min):
Heat the oil on medium-high heat in a good sized casserole and sear the meat on all sides.
Add 15 cL water, lower the heat to minimum and cook, covered, for about 1h30 min. Turn the meat over regularly to allow it to brown on all sides. If it becomes too dry, add a bit more water. At the end of the cooking time, the meat should be caramelized with just a bit of juice left.
Take the meat out of the casserole, add a glass of water and reduce the juices for a few minutes.
Cook the cabbage (1H30 - start at the same time as the pork):
Core the cabbage and shred it finely using a long knife. Wash and set aside.
Melt half the butter in a large pan with tall sides. Add the cabbage, apple juice, juniper berries if using, and a bit of salt and pepper. Cover and cook on low heat for 1 h.
Wash, peel and core the apples. Cut in small pieces and mix gently with the cabbage after it has been cooking for one hour. Stir in the remaining butter, adjust the seasoning and cook, covered, for another 30 minutes.
Carve the pork and serve on top of the cabbage with the sauce on the side.
At least 2 hours before cooking:
Cook the pork for 15 min in boiling water, drain and pat dry.
Mix the honey, soy sauce, pepper and mustard. Rub on the meat and marinate in the fridge of at least one hour.
Cook the pork (1H30min):
Heat the oil on medium-high heat in a good sized casserole and sear the meat on all sides.
Add 15 cL water, lower the heat to minimum and cook, covered, for about 1h30 min. Turn the meat over regularly to allow it to brown on all sides. If it becomes too dry, add a bit more water. At the end of the cooking time, the meat should be caramelized with just a bit of juice left.
Take the meat out of the casserole, add a glass of water and reduce the juices for a few minutes.
Cook the cabbage (1H30 – start at the same time as the pork):
Core the cabbage and shred it finely using a long knife. Wash and set aside.
Melt half the butter in a large pan with tall sides. Add the cabbage, apple juice, juniper berries if using, and a bit of salt and pepper. Cover and cook on low heat for 1 h.
Wash, peel and core the apples. Cut in small pieces and mix gently with the cabbage after it has been cooking for one hour. Stir in the remaining butter, adjust the seasoning and cook, covered, for another 30 minutes.
Carve the pork and serve on top of the cabbage with the sauce on the side.
The French recipe calls for "échine de porc", a meat cut that includes the neck down to the top ribs. As it turns out, British butchers cut their meat differently from French ones, so I could not find this cut at my local butcher (I wonder whether the EU will ever tackle that one!!). On my butcher's advice, I used pork belly instead. A nice loin with the bone on would work just as well and be probably a bit less fatty.
Juniper berries can be found in the spice aisle of your supermarket. They look like large peppercorns and have a distinctive bitter-sweet and peppery flavour. I thought they added a lovely touch to the cabbage but Olivier did not like so much the strong taste they produced when crunched. If you want to avoid this, crush the berries lightly to allow them to flavour the dish and place them in a tea mesh or a a piece of tied cloth before adding them to the cabbage. Remove the mesh just before serving.
Juniper berries can be found in the spice aisle of your supermarket. They look like large peppercorns and have a distinctive bitter-sweet and peppery flavour. I thought they added a lovely touch to the cabbage but Olivier did not like so much the strong taste they produced when crunched. If you want to avoid this, crush the berries lightly to allow them to flavour the dish and place them in a tea mesh or a a piece of tied cloth before adding them to the cabbage. Remove the mesh just before serving.
Ingredients
For the pork:
1.5 Kg pork loin or pork belly (with the bones one)
3 tablespoons honey
3 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon mustard
3 tablespoon olive oil
Salt and pepper
For the cabbage:
800 g red cabbage, shredded
3 apples
15 cL organic apple juice
1 tablespoon juniper berries, lightly crushed
50 g butter
For the pork:
1.5 Kg pork loin or pork belly (with the bones one)
3 tablespoons honey
3 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon mustard
3 tablespoon olive oil
Salt and pepper
For the cabbage:
800 g red cabbage, shredded
3 apples
15 cL organic apple juice
1 tablespoon juniper berries, lightly crushed
50 g butter
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