Brined Pork Roast Recipes

SPICE-BRINED PORK ROAST

Steps:

• In a large saucepan, combine the first seven ingredients. Bring to a boil; cook and stir until salt and sugar are dissolved. Remove from the heat; cool to room temperature., Place a large heavy-duty resealable plastic bag inside a second large resealable plastic bag; add pork. Carefully pour cooled brine into bag. Squeeze out as much air as possible; seal bags and turn to coat. Refrigerate for 12-24 hours, turning several times. Strain brine; discard liquid and set aside seasonings., Lightly grease the grill rack. Prepare grill for indirect heat, using a drip pan. Add reserved seasonings to coals. Place pork over drip pan and grill, covered, over indirect medium heat for 1-1/2-2 hours or until a thermometer reads 160°. Let stand for 5 minutes before slicing.

BASIC PORK BRINE

Steps:

• Mix water, brown sugar, and salt in a bowl until sugar is dissolved. Stir in garlic and ginger.

BRINED PORK ROAST

Steps:

• Combine all ingredients in a saucepan.
• Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer gently for 15 minutes.
• Cool to room temperature.
• Immerse pork roast of your choice in the cooled brine mixture, and refrigerate for 12 hours or overnight (up to 24 hours) turning occasionally if necessary for even brining.
• Remove roast from brine, rinse, and pat dry with paper towels, and roast (on a rack or grill pan) according to your favorite recipe until a thermometer, inserted in the center of the roast, reads 155 degrees.
• Allow the roast to rest for 20 minutes before carving.
• (Roast may be coated with mustard, breadcrumbs or glaze of your choice before or during roasting, if desired.) NOTE: Smaller cuts of pork, such as pork tenderloins, may also be brined in this way- but should be immersed in the brine solution for proportionately less time, to avoid over-salting.

BEER BRINED PORK CHOPS WITH ROASTED APPLES

Steps:

• Place pork chops in 1-gallon resealable freezer plastic bag. In medium bowl, mix water, beer, brown sugar and kosher salt until brown sugar is dissolved. Add peppercorns, thyme sprigs and rosemary sprigs. Pour brine over pork chops. Seal bag; refrigerate 4 to 24 hours, turning bag occasionally.
• Heat oven to 375°F. Line cookie sheet with foil; spray foil with cooking spray.
• In large bowl, toss apples, garlic, parsley, chopped thyme, chopped rosemary, salt, pepper and flour. Spread apples in single layer on cookie sheet. Drizzle with 1/4 cup oil. Roast 45 minutes to 1 hour or until apples are softened.
• About 20 minutes before apples are done, remove pork chops from brine and discard brine. Do not rinse pork chops; pat dry with paper towels. In large skillet, heat 1 tablespoon oil over medium-high heat. Add pork chops; cook about 10 minutes, turning once, or until pork is no longer pink in center. Let stand 5 minutes.
• Serve pork chops with roasted apples. Garnish with additional thyme and rosemary sprigs, if desired.

BRINED AND STUFFED PORK LOIN ROAST

Steps:

• Mix water, salt, and brown sugar in a saucepan, stirring to dissolve salt and sugar. Add bay leaves, rosemary, 1 teaspoon black pepper, and thyme; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer brine for 5 minutes. Let brine cool to room temperature.
• Place pork roast into a large nonreactive bowl, pour brine over pork, and cover; marinate in refrigerator for 12 to 24 hours.
• Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium heat; cook and stir apple and shallots into hot oil until shallots are soft, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat, let cool to room temperature, and mix spinach, walnuts, egg, and goat cheese into apple mixture. Season stuffing with salt and black pepper.
• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
• Remove pork from brine and discard used brine. Cut roast lengthwise down the center to within about 1 1/2 inches of the bottom and open the roast like a book. Spoon apple stuffing onto one side of meat and fold the other half over the stuffing. Tie the roast closed in 4 or 5 places with kitchen twine. Set roast on a rack placed into a roasting pan.
• Roast in the preheated oven until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the center of the stuffing reads 145 to 150 degrees F (63 degrees C to 65 degrees C), about 1 hour and 15 minutes.