Pork with Marsala Gravy (4)
Ingredients
Instructions
  1. A few hours before you cook the pork: pick and finely chop the rosemary leaves, then place in a pestle and mortar with the sea salt and ½ tsp freshly ground black pepper and grind together. Peel and halve the garlic cloves lengthways.
  2. Remove the pork from the fridge and, using a paring knife, make small incisions into the flesh. Poke the cut garlic into these. Rub the rosemary seasoning all over, but mostly into the scored skin.
  3. Return the pork to the fridge – on a plate, uncovered – and leave to dry out for three hours (if you have time), bringing it out to come to room temperature at least 30 minutes before you want to cook.
  4. When you are ready to cook the meat, preheat the oven to its highest temperature – around 250C/230C fan/highest gas mark ideally.
  5. Peel and halve the shallots and place in a roasting tray just big enough to hold them in a single layer. Place the pork on top of the halved shallots and drizzle everything with olive oil, rubbing it into the meat but not the skin. Pour 250ml of the Marsala into the bottom of the tray and place in the oven. Roast for around 15-20 minutes, until the skin is starting to blister.
  6. Reduce the heat to 200C/180C fan/gas mark 6 and continue to cook the pork for around 80-90 minutes, or until the meat has an internal cooking temperature of 72C. A couple of times while roasting, spoon Marsala from the pan over the shallots, or if it has cooked away, add 100ml of hot water to them – you want them soft and golden by the end, but not burnt.
  7. When the pork is ready, take the tray out of the oven and place the meat and shallots on a serving platter or board. Cover and rest for 15 minutes while you make the gravy.
  8. Carefully pour out the juices from the tray into a jug. Spoon two and a half tablespoons of the pork fat back into the tray, and carefully separate the rest of the fat from the pan juices, discarding the fat. Place the roasting tray on a medium-low heat. Stir in the plain flour until deeply golden and mixed in well. After a few minutes, add the remaining Marsala and the reserved pan juices and keep stirring until smooth.
  9. Cook it for a couple of minutes, then gradually add the hot chicken stock until you have a smooth gravy. Leave it to simmer for five minutes, until thick and rich, adding a splash more water to get the consistency you like. Taste and adjust the seasoning, then serve alongside the pork and roast shallots.