Cooking: Pork Roast and a Note on Side Dishes

I came to a realization this week. I have simplified my meals to one pot meals and pretty inclusive main dishes. I really do not make side dishes that often. I just heat up frozen veggies, make carrot sticks, etc. and prepare some fruit  and go from there. I could make a salad but I'd be the only one eating it and I don't like salad that much. I look for vegetables I can add to my main dishes, I don't really look for side dishes at all. I think about how to incorporate vegetables into every meal, or quickly cut up something to serve raw. I guess I'm a main dish girl. So when these cooking posts show up, many of them will not have side dishes. You can assume we ate some carrot stick or frozen peas, and I will assume you made yourself a beautiful salad, or fancy side dish that appealed to you. If you readers want more side dishes I can work on that. For now I will just let it go.

Now on to the cooking!


Pork Roast


1 or 2 Tablespoons of oil or fat
1  Pork loin roast> (I use a 6" length of a whole pork loin)
Seasoning Salt

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. I cook my pork roast in a cast iron dutch oven. You can use any pan for the browning and another for the baking if you don't have a dutch oven. Preheat dutch oven over medium high heat. Add fat and heat to a sizzle. Add the pork and sear on all sides. I sprinkle the top with seasoning salt after each turn.

Cover roast and bake until meat reaches at least 145 degrees on a thermometer. Bake 30 minutes and then check the temperature every 20 minutes or so until done. The baking time will vary considerably depending on how hot your pan was when you seared the meat, how cold the meat was when you started and the actual weight of your roast. Remove from heat and let the roast rest covered for 15 to 20 minutes. 

The roast will shrink as it bakes. Now it is ready to slice and eat! 


Cascade Factors:

Pork roast leftovers: In my house leftover pork gets made into barbeque pork sandwiches, one of my favorites. I also set aside some cubed pork to make egg roll filling. This time I used some to make the fanciest ramen noodle soup my daughter has ever eaten. Of course it can be used in any stir fry. It can be spiced and shredded and used in carnitas. It can be cubed and frozen to be a quick addition in the future. I may have more ideas later, but for now it never lasts that long. How can it when we make things like this:

 


We had a lot of fun cooking this food. I am encouraging my kids to share more of my enthusiasm in the kitchen. I think the meals are getting better and my life a measure more cozy.

Thoughtfully,
Kristin