Slow Roasted Pork Shoulder

If you love a meltingly tender, easily made roast, I am certain that you will love this Slow Roasted Pork Shoulder. The slow cooking method produces meat that is fork tender and melts in the mouth. As it slowly cooks it takes up the flavours of garlic, rosemary, oregano, onion and fennel seeds. Served with an easily made fresh Apple Salsa and simple homemade gravy. It is the ideal meal for a special occasion or family roast. Dinner time is made easy with this delicious pork recipe.

Course Main Course

Cuisine Mediterranean

Prep Time 30

Cook Time 4 40

Resting Time 20

Total Time 5 30

Servings people

Calories 511kcal

Author Alexandra Cook - It's Not Complicated Recipes

Ingredients

For the Slow Roasted Pork Shoulder:

1.5 kg (3.3 lb) boneless pork shoulder - without the skin See Note 1
1 teaspoon coarse cooking sea salt
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
3 large garlic cloves - cut into slivers
1 large fresh rosemary stalk - more if necessary See Note 2
2 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil See Note 3
2 large brown/yellow onions - each peeled and cut into 8 wedges with some root attached See Note 4
2 teaspoon dried oregano
1 ½ teaspoon fennel seeds
1 teaspoon fresh rosemary - finely chopped
2 cups (500 ml) chicken stock - homemade or store bought See Note 5

For the Apple Salsa:

2 large apples - finely diced – use apples you enjoy eating. I used Pink Lady.
½ medium red onion - finely chopped
¼ cup fresh mint leaves - finely chopped and firmly packed
5 teaspoon fresh lime juice – or to taste
¼ teaspoon sea salt flakes – or to taste
long red chilli – thinly sliced – optional

For the Gravy:

2 tablespoon (40 g) unsalted butter
¼ cup (40 g) plain/all-purpose flour - can use gluten-free
2 cups (500 ml) stock from the cooked pork

Instructions

For the Slow Roasted Pork Shoulder:

Remove the pork shoulder from the fridge. Our pork shoulder came without the skin, which is ideal for making shredded/pulled pork. If yours comes with the skin, you will need to remove it. If you wish, you could use it to make crackling. Truss with string if not already done by the butcher. This helps it keep a nice shape. (See Note 1)
Preheat your oven to 140 degrees C (285 C).
If the pork shoulder has a lot of moisture, pat it dry with paper towel.
Using a sharp knife, make a deep insert into the fat side of the flesh and insert a large garlic sliver and about 5 rosemary leaves into the flesh. Use the tip of a blunt knife to push them down.
Repeat this procedure, around the entire pork shoulder, leaving a space of about 2.5 cm (1 inch) between.
Combine the salt and black pepper and rub into the shoulder. Set aside at room temperature for 10 minutes.
In a large, heavy-based Dutch Oven or oven-safe saucepan with a tight-fitting lid, heat the olive oil on medium-high heat.
Add the pork, fat side down, and brown for 3–5 minutes. Turn it over and brown the other side for 3–5 minutes.
Turn off the heat on your stove top and add the onion wedges around the pork.
Sprinkle the pork with the dried oregano, fennel seeds and chopped rosemary and pour the chicken stock around the meat.
Put the lid on the saucepan and place in the preheated oven.
After about 2 hours, carefully remove from the oven and check that there is sufficient liquid – there should be plenty. If there isn't, add a little more stock.
Baste the pork with the juices and return to the oven for another 2 ½ hours.
Remove from the oven and stand for 10 minutes. The pork will be very fragile, so carefully remove it if you're wanting to serve it whole. Or, remove to a board and shred the meat with two forks.
Serve the pork with the delicious Gravy and Apple Salsa.

For the Apple Salsa:

Add all the ingredients to a medium size bowl and toss together gently. Check that the seasoning is to your liking, adding extra lime juice or salt to suit your taste. If using chilli, sprinkle some over the top of the salsa and serve the remainder separately.

For the Gravy:

To a small saucepan, add the butter and melt over medium heat. Add the flour, and using a whisk, mix it into the butter. Cook for 1–2 minutes.
Add in the pan juices, along with some onions if you wish. Bring to a simmer and allow to thicken slightly. Add more stock if necessary to get the consistency you like.
Use an immersion blender to carefully blend the gravy to a smooth consistency.

Notes

Pork shoulder: to begin, we need to truss the pork and we do this for two reasons; to help the meat have a more uniform shape and therefore cook more evenly. You may find the butcher has already trussed the meat or is happy to do it for you. But if not, it’s not difficult. There are classic techniques used by butchers. They use a continuous length of twine, using specific knots, but you can get a good result with a simpler method. To begin, you will need kitchen twine. Shape the pork shoulder with your hands and bring a loop of twine around, tie it as tightly as you can and cut off the ends. Repeat at 2.5 cm/1 inch intervals. It will still give you a good result.
Rosemary: we use sprigs of rosemary to insert into the pork with slivers of garlic. We also add some finely chopped rosemary to the roasting pan.
Tablespoon: we use a standard Australian tablespoon which is 20 ml (4 teaspoons). For readers located elsewhere in the world, please use 1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon for each listed tablespoon.
Brown/yellow onions: leave some root attached so the wedges stay intact.
Chicken stock: a full-flavoured stock is preferable as it adds good flavour to the pork. It is unlikely you will need to add more liquid, but if you find it drying out when you check after 2 hours cooking, add a little more stock to the pan. We recommend using either chicken or vegetable stock.
Seasoning: adjust the seasoning to your liking – we recommend using freshly ground black pepper and sea salt flakes for the best flavour.
Storage: cool leftovers as quickly as possible and store in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 3 days. However, for safety reasons, if the pork has been at room temperature for 2 hours, it should be discarded.
Freezing: freeze leftovers in a freezer-safe container for up to 2 months. Cool the pork, separate it into portions, wrap in cling wrap and store in a freezer safe container or ziplock bag.
Reheating: gently reheat using some liquid to keep the flesh moist. Use chicken stock or water in the microwave, oven or frying pan. It should be heated to register 75 degrees C (165 F) throughout.
Servings: will serve 4-6 people, depending on what it is served with.

Nutrition