Monday, October 8, 2012

Rosemary Pork En Cocotte with Apples and Onions

Lately I've been experimenting with various combinations cooked en cocotte. Sounds so fancy doesn't it? Hah! Turns out en cocotte means cooked in a casserole. The next time you make tuna casserole, call it Tuna with Pasta En Cocotte. Okay, that might be a bit of an exaggeration, but the worst thing that will happen is your kids will look it up on the computer to prove you wrong -- and they might learn something in the process.

According to Cook's Illustrated, the difference between cooking en cocotte and braising is the addition of liquid. Braising involves liquids while cooking en cocotte means the meat cooks in its own juices. Of course, this is one of the reasons I like it -- so simple!

There's a little bit of prep time, but then the whole thing goes into the oven while the cook does something else, writes a mystery, for instance.

You do need a Dutch oven with a tight lid for this. The idea is that the herbs and spices infuse the liquids from the items in the pot, which results in a delicious little sauce.

I used rosemary because it always goes so beautifully with pork. If it's not your herb of choice, feel free to experiment with whatever your family likes. I also used dark brown sugar because it always enhances apples. Note, though, that it's not enough brown sugar to make it a sweet dish. It simply enhances the flavors.

My only gripe is cooking time. They vary widely in recipes, and I'm beginning to see why. Each cut of meat will be a slightly different size. I also suspect that it has something to do with the type of dutch oven used. Cast iron cooking times probably differ from plain old stainless cooking times. So be prepared to check the temperature of your meat. Mine took an hour and ten minutes to reach 144 degrees.


Rosemary Pork En Cocotte with
Apples and Onion

3 tablespoons canola oil
1 boneless pork loin
1 tablespoon dried rosemary
salt and pepper
1 large red onion
5 medium apples
3 cloves garlic
2 tablespoons dark brown sugar

Wash and peel apples. Quarter, core, and cut each quarter into four slices.

Slice the onion in half and cut each half into 1 inch wedges.

Wash pork and dry. Ideally it will have a thin layer of fat on the top side. Do not remove. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. I like to rub it on with my hand to spread it around. Add rosemary to the top side.

Preheat oven to 250.

Heat the oil in a Dutch oven on the stove top until very hot but not scorching. Brown the pork. When browned, remove to a plate.

Add the apples, onions, and garlic cloves to the hot pan, lowering the temperature if necessary so they don't burn.

Add the brown sugar and stir. Cook, stirring every now and then, until just barely soft -- about 5 minutes.



Remove pot from heat. Nestle the meat into the pot and pour in any juices that accumulated on the plate. Place a sheet of aluminum foil over the top of the Dutch oven, running your finger around it to be sure it's tight. Cover with the lid and place in the oven.

Cook 45 - 60 minutes, checking with an instant read thermometer. Remove from the oven at 144 - 145 degrees. Set on counter and keep covered another 20 minutes or so until it reaches 150 degrees.


Remove meat. Add salt and pepper (even a pat of butter if you like) to the apple mixture and stir. Slice the meat thin and serve with apples and the juices in the bottom of the pan.





17 comments:

  1. I need to ask for a Dutch oven for Christmas!

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    1. Katreader, I'm in line with you. I'd like a Le Creuset. Waiting for a sale.

      ~ Krista

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  2. We must have had a psychic link this week, Krista. I made a roasted pork tenderloin with sauteed apples on the side. Blame sheer brain fade (my son called it "my brain ran out of gas") for forgetting the onions. And, just to round out the carbs in the meal, I made homemade macaroni and cheese! This is one of my favorite Fall dinners. Now I'm ready to make Pot Roast my next day off, Thursday.
    BTW, to all of you mystery writing ladies, I wanted you to know that I had a $55 gift card for Amazon (got it for participating in a medical survey, gotta love it) and promptly spent EVERY penny, and a few more, on new books for my Kindle! I need to find some more surveys!

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    1. Love the brain running out of gas. What a clever son. I have to remember that phrase!

      It must be the sudden onset of cold weather. It's so nice to have the oven on and smell those savory scents. Pot roast -- yum! I don't remember the last time I made that.

      Thanks for buying books, Nurse JudyMac. Hope they're all wonderful. That must have been some survey for it to pay so much!

      ~ Krista

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  3. Oh my goodness, this sounds so good. I have a small Le Creuset dutch oven that this would fit perfectly in. Might try it with chicken, too.

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    1. I made a chicken this way last week with red-skinned potatoes. The potatoes were absolutely fabulous. I think I cooked it at 350, though. It really was a meal in a pot.

      ~ Krista

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  4. Yay JudyMac, thanks for buying books!

    I was about to ask Krista what she served this with--mac and cheese was a brilliant choice.

    Sounds yummy Krista and I bet it might work well with chicken too, as anonymous suggested.

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    1. Lucy, it worked great with chicken, but I made some changes. We ate it with pasta, but it would go well with rice, too. Once they figure out why rice is contaminated, maybe we'll eat it that way again!

      ~ Krista

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  5. Okay, I'm drooling, and it's still morning! Pork and apples is such a classic combination, and the onions give the dish a lovely dash of color. Yum!

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    1. Sheila I love pork with apples. Honestly, I wanted to drink the liquid in the bottom of the pot. The apple juices were simply delicious!

      ~ Krista

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  6. This looks divine. Our store often has pork loins on sale for a very reasonable price--next time they do, I'm stocking up and definitely making this.

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    1. We must shop the same way, Peg. When meat is on sale, I stock up and freeze it.

      ~ Krista

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  7. Roasting like this has been a long tradition in my Slavic family, however never in a dutch oven. And the idea of 45 minutes to an hour is considered raw.:) Now we do it in a slow cooker, no not a crockpot, and it still cooks for a minimum of 6 hours. Never with sugar--so American, and the onions need to cook to mush to make the sauce. I like the idea of apples, but they'd have to be added closer to the end, otherwise why bother, just use applesauce.
    Patg

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    1. Patg, would you share your recipe? I would love to make it! It sounds great.

      ~ Krista

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  8. Krista, this looks lovely. You'll giggle when you see my recipe on Wednesday. Great minds. LOL

    ~Daryl aka Avery

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    1. Uh oh! But I know at least one of your ingredients is very different from mine! I'm looking forward to it.

      ~ Krista

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  9. Now I want to cook something en cocotte ... must find something vegie that will work this way, because I love trying new techniques. Thanks for sharing this one with us!

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