We had prepared 3 pork loin roasts in anticipation of a big family gathering next weekend. However, with the Covid-19 lock down, that is not happening. So I pulled one of the pork loin roasts from the freezer. It was already seasoned with Penzey’s “Barbeque of the Americas” and vacuum bagged, ready for sous vide cooking and grilling. However today it was not exactly great grilling weather with 20-30mph winds rain and 40 degree temps. I figured it would be better to make something that could be cooked completely indoors.
So I surfed for recipes for pork loin or chops. One with peaches looked appealing. We had also stocked up on canned fruit at the start of the virus outbreak, so this seemed workable.
Pork loin
- 3 lb pork loin trimmed of fat
- Season Liberally with Penzey’s Barbeque of the Americas
- Vacuum bag and cook at 141F for 4 hours.
Sauce
Toward the end of the cooking time, prepare the sauce. Later when serving it was clear we underestimated the amount of fruit and sauce needed for the meal and left-overs. So think of the list below as the amount per pound of meat.
- 1 can – 14 oz sliced peaches in natural juice
- Drain the juice into a sauce pan and add:
- 3 finely minced cloves of garlic
- 1/2 tsp dried thyme – crushed after measuring
- 1/2 tsp dried rosemary -crushed after measuring(Teal hates the “twigs” as she calls the rosemary needles)
- 1/3c packed brown sugar
- 1/4c balsamic vinegar
- 6 peach slices finely chopped
Simmer this until reduced by half. Then add:
1 shot (1.5 oz )bourbon – I use Makers Mark , and simmer for 5 min more
Prepare to brown and roast
Preheat the oven to 500F
Remove the roast from the bag, scrape off the protein globs and pat dry.
In a large pan , melt 1.5 TB bacon drippings and heat to just under smoking
Brown the roast on the top, sides and ends (about 2 min per side)
Add the rest of the peaches and pour the thickened sauce over the top of the roast
Place in the oven on convect for 10 min. It will get all nice, bubbly and caramelized. When I pulled it from the oven the center temp was 147F. This was a bit higher than desired, but still acceptable
Rest the roast for 10-15 min and carve for serving.
Changes for next time
Definitely more peach sauce – as I noted above treat these amounts as “per pound of pork”
Maybe I should have set the sous vide temp to 139 instead? Maybe it will be a bit pinker but it was definitely juicy and delicious.
Add Cowboy Candy or half a finely chopped, seeded and deveined habanero chili to a batch. I will try this when I am making multiple batches (otherwise Teal would revolt) .
Mark Bronkalla