| Level: | Intermediate |
| Total: | 5 hr |
| Prep: | 35 min |
| Inactive: | 25 min |
| Cook: | 4 hr |
| Yield: | 8 to 10 servings |
Ingredients
- 4 cloves garlic, smashed and finely chopped
- 1 bunch fresh rosemary, picked and finely chopped
- 1 bunch fresh sage, picked and finely chopped
- 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
- 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
- One 13-rib pork loin, membrane between the rib bones slit to allow the pork to curl around and stand up
- Kosher salt
- Pear and Chestnut Stuffing, recipe follows
- 3 cloves garlic, smashed
- 2 ribs celery, cut into 1/4-inch dice
- 1 Spanish onion, cut into 1/4-inch dice
- 1/2 fennel bulb, cut into 1/4-inch dice
- 8 cups chicken stock
- 2 cups dry white wine
- 2 bay leaves
- Kosher salt
- Extra-virgin olive oil
- 8 ounces slab bacon, cut into 1/4-inch dice
- 4 ribs celery, cut into 1/4-inch dice
- 2 Spanish onions, cut into 1/4-inch dice
- 1/4 fennel bulb, cut into 1/4-inch dice
- Kosher salt
- 4 sprigs rosemary, picked and finely chopped
- 3 cloves garlic, smashed and finely chopped
- 8 ounces peeled chestnuts, coarsely chopped
- 3/4 cup dried cranberries
- 4 Anjou pears, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch dice
- 2 cups dry white wine
- 12 cups cubed crustless, stale sourdough or peasant bread
- 4 cups chicken stock, warmed
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.
- For the pork: In a small bowl, combine the garlic, rosemary, sage and crushed red pepper with 1/2 cup olive oil. Sprinkle the pork generously with salt and brush both sides with the olive oil herb paste.
- Stand the pork rack up and curl it around so that the two ends meet; be sure that the thick meaty part of the pork is on the inside. Secure the roast by tying it twice around the outside of the roast with twine.
- Place the pork in a large roasting pan fitted with a pizza pan tray and stuff the center of the pork with the Pear and Chestnut Stuffing. (There will be leftover stuffing. Place the leftover stuffing in a baking dish and cook for 35 minutes at 350 degrees F.)
- For the pan sauce: Place the garlic and diced veggies around the pork. Add half the chicken stock, the wine and bay leaves to the pan. Sprinkle everything with salt.
- Cover the pork bones with aluminum foil to prevent the bones from burning. Place the pork in the oven. Roast until the pork is starting to brown, about 30 minutes.
- Turn the oven down to 325 degrees F.
- Roast the pork for 2 1/2 more hours, basting the pork occasionally. Rotate the pork a couple of times during the cooking time. If the liquid level reduces, replace it with the remaining stock.
- When the pork is cooked to the proper doneness – an instant-read thermometer should read 140 to 145 degrees F – remove it from the oven. Carefully transfer the pork to a serving platter and cover it loosely with aluminum foil. Let the pork rest for 20 to 25 minutes.
- Bring the pan juices to a boil. Taste and re-season if needed. Blend the veggies if desired to create a smoother sauce. I also like to leave them in.
- To serve: Remove the twine. Scoop out the stuffing and cut the pork in between the bones to create chops. Top with pan sauce.
- Coat a wide, straight-sided pan with olive oil and add the bacon. Bring the pan to a medium heat and let the bacon get brown and crispy.
- Add the celery, onions and fennel and season with salt. Cook the veggies until they get soft and very aromatic, 8 to10 minutes. Add the rosemary and garlic and cook for 1 to 2 minutes more.
- Toss in the chestnuts, cranberries and pears, and stir to combine. Add the wine and let it reduce by half.
- Put the bread in a large mixing bowl and add the cooked veggie mixture to the bread. Stir to combine and douse the bread with half the stock. Use your hands to combine the bread, veggies and stock. Add more stock when/if needed to really saturate the bread. Season with salt and taste it to make sure it is delicious.
Reviews
This recipe was so yummy and loved by everyone. Made it for Thanksgiving 2022…no one missed the turkey! Had my butcher tie it into the crown. That was the way to go! Didn’t change a thing; used my immersion blender to purée the pan sauce. Served a delicata squash, scalloped potatoes, and a cranberry/pear relish.
Anne, this is fantastic!! I have made 4 times now and it is delicious each and every time! So tender, juicy and flavorful!! I have found it cooks much faster than indicated, but I am also starting with a smaller roast. Just keep an eye on the internal temp and you can’t go wrong! Thank you for this recipe!!
I made this last Christmas Eve (2015) oh my was soooo good! Everybody LOVE IT! And the presentation was a hit! I’m making it again this year! THANK YOU for sharing this wonderful recipe!
I made this meal for a special family dinner. So many compliments. It is now my assigned dinner to make. Everyone loved it. Very..Very Good. Making this year for my family’s New Year Day dinner.
This was absolutely the best pork roast I have ever had, let alone make myself. My dinner guest now believe I am an iron chef. Bravo Ann and thanks for making my dinner party a success.
The beautiful Christmas table settings and beautiful décor could not compete with this outrageous meal. First time I made a crown roast, but I knew from the ingredients list this was going over the top! And it did! My family and guests were murmuring all the way through the meal as to how delicious everything was. Thanks Anne! You made our Christmas Holiday the most special one of all!
amazing! I didn’t have white wine so used Chinese ShaoXing wine and it still came out beautifully!
This was so disappointing! I wanted to wow my 16 guests but this firecracker was a dud. The liquid made it taste like chicken; it was dry, and boring. No one said anything. Ugh. I should have done a rub and roasted it -rather than steam it! I will never do this one again!
I made this recipe for the first time during the holidays for my family. This was a great cooking experience, I had not worked with a crown roast of pork prior to this. Not a single bite was left!
Made this for our family’s New Years Day dinner. This recipe was easy to follow and it came out great. Like a lot of other people it was done in about two hours total time in the oven and the last 30 minutes was done at only 300 degrees. We thickened up the pan gravy with a little flour.
We combined this with glazed carrots, celery and cheesey mashed potatoes to complete the meal.
We combined this with glazed carrots, celery and cheesey mashed potatoes to complete the meal.