Food & Wine (October 2014)
We always hate throwing away our cheese rinds.
Whenever we finish off a block of Parmesan, we dutifully wrap up the hard rind and store it in the refrigerator to use in a future dish, 'cause that's what food magazines tell you to do. ("Save the rind and use it in a cheese sauce!" "Use it to flavor soups!" "Toss it in a pot of rice for added flavor!")
But the truth is we rarely ever do anything with our hoarded Parm rinds. The recipes we cook from hardly ever call for a cheese rind. And when we're improvising dishes on our own, we tend to forget about the huge cache of rinds sitting in our fridge. So the pile of rinds just continues to grow. Seriously, at one point we must have had 10 discarded cheese rinds sitting in a Ziploc in the fridge.
That's one reason we were eager to try this Pork Roast with Garlic-Parmesan Cream: It would make use of one of our stowed-away cheese rinds.
The other reason we wanted to try this? Because it sounded deliriously delicious.
Note the long cook time here: nearly five hours. But for the most part, the prep is actually quite easy and hands-off. The first 3 1/2 hours just consist of simmering the pork in a broth of buttermilk, butter, garlic and cheese.
If your mouth isn't already watering, it will be as soon as you get that on the stove. After just a few minutes of simmering -- and then for the next four hours -- our apartment smelled incredible, like an intense fettuccine Alfredo sauce was bubbling away on the stove.
What really makes this recipe great is that it doesn't stop there. Once the pork has cooked to falling-apart tender in the sauce, you take it out and roast it in the oven, giving it a golden-brown, slightly crisp finish.
The other awesome thing about the roasting step -- and, in our opinion, probably the best part of this dish -- is the fennel. It helps brighten up the rich, cheesy sauce, and it adds a welcome freshness.
And on that note, this is one seriously rich dish. Clay and our other dinner guests really loved it; Zach thought it was maybe just slightly on the side of being overly rich. Either way, you'll definitely want to serve this with a nice green salad (a kale and apple salad would be marvelous with these flavors!) or some simple green vegetables.
All in all, though, we really liked this. Simmering the pork in the cheese gives you unbelieavably tender and juicy meat. Pouring on even more of the cheese sauce at the table takes this into the stratosphere of decadence.
It's hearty, cheesy, rich comfort food -- a great choice for the cooler autumn nights on the way.
Oh, and if you need a cheese rind, call us. We still have plenty in the fridge!
Pork Roast with Garlic-Parmesan Cream
Food & Wine (October 2014), recipe by Kay Chun
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Total Time: 4 hours, 45 minutes (30 minutes of active time)
Serves 8
INGREDIENTS
1 quart heavy cream
2 cups buttermilk
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
3 heads of garlic, top 1/2 inch cut off
One 3-ounce Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese rind
2 small sage sprigs
One 5-pound, boneless pork shoulder roast
Kosher salt
Pepper
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
4 medium fennel bulbs (3 pounds), trimmed and cut into wedges
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Chopped parsley, for garnish
METHOD
In a pot just large enough to hold the pork, combine the cream with the buttermilk, butter, garlic, cheese rind and 1 sage sprig. Season the pork with salt and pepper and add to the pot. Bring just to a simmer. Cover, leaving it open just a crack, and cook over low heat for about 3 1/2 hours, until very tender. Transfer the pork and garlic to a large plate; discard the cheese rind.
Boil the poaching liquid over moderately high heat, whisking occasionally, until thickened, about 20 minutes. Strain the sauce into a bowl. Whisk in the lemon juice and season with salt and pepper; keep warm.
Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 450°. On a large baking sheet, toss the fennel and the remaining sage sprig with the olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Arrange the fennel in a single layer. Place the pork on top of the fennel and roast until the pork is deeply golden and the fennel is tender, about 20 minutes. Transfer the pork to a cutting board and let rest for 15 minutes.
Thinly slice the pork. Arrange the fennel and garlic on a platter and top with the pork. Garnish with parsley and serve the sauce on the side.
