Without really performing any pickling, these candied pickles are incredibly tasty. My Mississippian grandmother gave me this recipe. Every other day, she rotates the Mason jar by turning it upside down, then back over. These pickles will become sweet and tasty in around a week.
| Prep Time: | 30 mins |
| Cook Time: | 1 hr 25 mins |
| Additional Time: | 45 mins |
| Total Time: | 2 hrs 40 mins |
| Servings: | 12 |
| Yield: | 1 roast |
Ingredients
- 1 (3 pound) boneless pork loin roast
- 5 teaspoons kosher salt
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 teaspoons ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
- ¼ teaspoon ground allspice
- 3 tablespoons honey, or as needed
- 8 baby potatoes
- 2 carrots, cut into 2-inch chunks
- 2 Anaheim chile peppers, halved and seeded
- 1 red onion, roughly chopped
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- salt to taste
- ½ cup plain Greek yogurt
- 2 tablespoons thinly sliced fresh mint
- 1 clove garlic, finely crushed
Instructions
- Butterfly the pork loin by cutting almost all the way through, starting on the thinnest side, keeping your knife flat and parallel to the cutting board. Stop about 1 inch from the opposite edge you started, so that the meat opens up like a book. A few more shallow cuts can be made if the pork is not opening up enough to flatten out, but do not cut all the way through, otherwise you’ll end up with two pieces.
- Season the butterflied pork on both sides with kosher salt and let sit out at room temperature for 30 to 45 minutes, or 2 to 3 hours in the fridge.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a roasting pan with 2 tablespoons olive oil. Pat the tenderloin dry with a paper towel.
- Mix cumin, coriander, ginger, black pepper, smoked paprika,cayenne, cinnamon, cloves, allspice, and honey together in a bowl with a spoon. Spread about half of the spice mixture inside the butterflied pork, fold it back together, and spread the remaining mixture all over the surface. Use 3 or 4 pieces of kitchen string to tie the loin up every few inches, cutting off extra string.
- Toss potatoes, carrots, chile peppers, and onion with olive oil and salt in a bowl.
- Place the pork into the prepared roasting pan and surround with vegetable mixture.
- Roast in the preheated oven until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the loin reads at least 140 to 145 degrees F (60 to 63 degrees C), about 1 hour and 15 minutes. Remove from the oven and turn roast over with tongs in pan drippings. Transfer to a plate, cover loosely with foil, and let rest for 15 minutes.
- Increase oven temperature to 425 degrees F. Toss vegetable mixture in pan drippings and return to the oven to crisp up, about 10 minutes.
- Combine yogurt, mint, and garlic in a small bowl for sauce.
- Remove strings on roast. Slice, spoon pan drippings over, and serve with vegetables and yogurt sauce.
- Chef’s Notes:
- You can use any size pork loin roast.
- Patting the pork roast dry before applying the Moroccan spice rub will make it easier to spread.
- Roasting the vegetables while the pork loin rests is only necessary if they need further cooking.
Nutrition Facts
| Calories | 333 kcal |
| Carbohydrate | 33 g |
| Cholesterol | 56 mg |
| Dietary Fiber | 4 g |
| Protein | 23 g |
| Saturated Fat | 4 g |
| Sodium | 877 mg |
| Sugars | 7 g |
| Fat | 12 g |
| Unsaturated Fat | 0 g |
Reviews
I liked it tons of flavor, I made a tzatziki sauce with it and some garlic cilantro naan. i highly recommend the tzatziki with it
This is an excellent pork roast recipe. I don’t typically cook with pork loin (usually just tenderloin) and was trepidacious about butterflying the meat. However, it turned out just fine and was able to hide any errors with the kitchen twine. I let the meat roast a little longer to get the vegetables more tender and next time I will pay closer attention or remove the pork and cook the vegetables longer. I included some peppers that turned out delicious. The pan drippings really made the pork and vegetables flavorful. Will definitely be making this again!
Easy and taste good!
The flavors were really good on this rub. I can see how it was adapted from a lamb recipe because I think it would be amazing on lamb. Also be careful with the cook time. I checked 2.78lb roast at 1 hour and it was already 150…so the meat was a little too done for me, but still giving 5 stars because the flavors were all there.
I made no changes to the recipe ingredients and used all the suggested quantities. My cooking method was totally different though; briquette bbq and lots of coal. I left the cut open, it took less than 15 minutes and the flavour was delicious. Absolutely nailed the taste! For all those having issues with mixing the honey, put your bowl (heat safe) over a pot of heating water. Thins the honey and allows for better viscosity while mixing the spices and pouring over the meat. I marinated the meat for 3 hours prior to cooking.
Chef John continues to excite my pallet and this is no exception. Made it with a smaller pork tenderloin but it scaling the recipe and cook time worked well, except the rub should not have been scaled as much.
Too much, needed contrasting flavors, the yogurt sauce was inedible so that was a waste. I enjoy trying new thing, sometimes they work sometimes they do not, this did not. The meat was way overdone and the veggies were undercooked. ( yes, I followed the recipe)I won’t make this again, but that shouldn’t stop you from experimenting.
SO GOOD.
Love this recipe! It’s now a staple in the dinner rotation!
A true winner. Remarkably simple to make and inexpensive. Perfect every time!
The brining does make the pork so moist and tender. The spices are just the icing on the cake! Delicious!
This was an excellent recipe. The fragrance filling the house made me wish time would go quicker. If the seasoning mixture with the honey is too difficult to spread, be patient. Place a spoonful on the pork and give it a few (10) seconds or so and it spreads much easier. I don’t think it would hurt to go heavy on the honey. That little bit of sweet really pops against the spices. Make sure to spend time really incorporating the honey and spices to avoid getting a granular mouth feel. Next time I will try this by rolling instead of butterflying to give it a nice presentation when sliced.
I made this twice and it’s a great one-pot meal. I will say both times it cooked significantly faster than the 1 hour 15 minutes it says. I checked my first roast at 1 hour and it was already over-done, but still good. I think Chef John perhaps used a bigger roast in the video than the 3 pounds listed. Just monitor yours. Also, use more honey and it spreads a lot easier!
Marvelous! I followed directions to a T and husband and I were delighted by the flavors of the spice mixture. We were also glad to get a couple of different veggies added to the platter. I cooked extra veggies so we could have them with leftover pork slices. Dry the meat before trying to spread the spice mixture. Don’t let the roast cook beyond 140-145 so it stays tender and juicy. I didn’t bother with the yogurt sauce–it was wonderful without it.
A great recipe and wonderful flavor. The only real adjustment I would recommend is toy around with the amount of honey in the mixture. I found that, with the called for amount of honey, the paste was a bit too thick to get good coverage. Thin it out a bit more with extra honey and don’t be afraid to use your hands to get good coverage. It’s messy, but well worth it.
Very tasty way to cook pork loin. You would not find this in Morocco though as it is a Muslim country…..
I’m definitely making this again! It was delicious! I did have a problem with the rub not… rubbing. I think that was a Me problem more than a recipe problem. My place is a little drafty and I think the honey started solidifying so the rub was more of a sticky paste that I couldn’t spread very well.
Delicious.
Impossible to spread the “paste” over the meat.
Excellent!
I enjoyed this, but the rest of the family was split 50/50…(thus the 4). The Moroccan spices are heavy and you if you don’t enjoy that, then this one may not be for you. But if you do, (like I do) you will enjoy it.