Roast pork with blueberry balsamic sauce and pistachio gremolata

Name: Roast pork with blueberry balsamic sauce and pistachio gremolata
Total time: 22500 s
Yield: 4 to 6 servings
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 1 pork picnic shoulder roast; 1 tbsp garlic powder; 1 tbsp shallot, minced; 2-3 heap tbsp premium blueberry jam (with chunks of berry); 1/4 cup aged balsamic vinegar; Zest of 2 lemons, finely grated; 1 clove garlic, minced; Handful fresh Italian parsley, chopped; 1/4 cup toasted, shelled pistachios, roughly chopped

Robert Gonzal @robert

Vancouver BC

Sunday dinner was pork roast, but I didn't feel like making just any ol' pork roast. My wife recently brought home a jar of chunky blueberry jam, and it occured to me that it, along with a bit of aged sweet balsamic, would make a wonderful sauce that'd not only be tasty, but a nice break from the usual apple. To jazz things up even more, I whipped up a super-easy gremolata with a handful of roasty pistachios mixed in. It was crunchy and bright and fresh, and worked perfectly with the meaty pork and tangy sauce. All-in-all, with only minimal extra effort, it turned out to be a pretty great Sunday dinner.

Robert Gonzal @robert

Saved

Ingredients

6 hr 15 minutes

4 to 6 servings

1pork picnic shoulder roast
1 tbspgarlic powder
1 tbspshallot, minced
2-3heap tbsp premium blueberry jam (with chunks of berry)
1/4 cupaged balsamic vinegar
Zest of 2 lemons, finely grated
1 clovegarlic, minced
Handfulfresh Italian parsley, chopped
1/4 cuptoasted, shelled pistachios, roughly chopped

Saved

Steps

6 hr 15 minutes

1

The day before, prep the roast by cutting a cross-hatch pattern into the skin, then seasoning the entire roast well with salt. Leave it uncovered in the fridge overnight.
2

Preheat you oven to 275 F. Make a rub by mixing the garlic powder together with about 1 tbsp each of salt and freshly cracked black pepper, then pat the rub onto the meat (but not the skin). Transfer the roast to a baking dish, making sure the skin side is up, and pop it into the oven for about 6 hrs, depending on size. You want to hit a sweet spot of about 205 F internal temperature.
3

To make the sauce, start by melting a spoonful of butter in a small saucepan on medium heat. Add the shallots and sweat them down for 2 or 3 minutes. Add the jam and let it melt, then stir in the balsamic. Bring to a gentle simmer and let it reduce slightly for about 5 minutes. Season with a pinch of salt and a few grinds of black pepper. Take the pan off the heat until ready to serve.
4

To make the gremolata, mix together the lemon zest, garlic, parsley and pistachios. Cover and leave it in the fridge until ready to serve.
5

Once the pork has reached temperature, turn the oven to broil to puff and crisp the skin. Keep a careful eye to make sure it doesn't burn. Pull the roast out of the oven and let it rest at least 15 minutes before serving.
6

To serve, carve the roast. Try to get a piece of crispy skin with each slice. The roast will probably shred a bit on you, so just do your best to keep it whole. Place the meat atop a little pool of the sauce (if the sauce is too thick, loosen it with a tiny splash of water), then sprinkle on the gremolata.