Roast Porcelet With Sausage & Apples Recipe
Prep Time:
45 minutes
Cook Time:
1 hour, 30 minutes
Servings:
8 to 10 servings
Ingredients
  • 1 pound ground pork
  • ½ Honeycrisp apple, cored and coarsely grated
  • 1 tablespoon kosher salt, plus more to taste
  • 1 tablespoon minced sage
  • 1 tablespoon minced thyme
  • 1 teaspoon minced fresh ginger
  • 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
  • Pinch ground cinnamon
  • Pinch ground white pepper
  • One 8-to-9-pound porcelet, ribs removed and loin still attached (see headnote)
  • 3 tablespoons olive oil
  • 3 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 large head red cabbage—quartered, cored and thinly sliced
  • 1 cup red wine
  • ⅓ cup red wine vinegar
  • 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
  • Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
  • 2 bunches (2 pounds) Hakurei turnips, trimmed and halved
  • 3 Honeycrisp apples, cored and cut into ¾-inch wedges
  • 2 tablespoons sage leaves, thinly sliced
  • 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
  • 1 tablespoon whole-grain mustard
  • 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
  • Kosher salt, to taste
  • Apple butter, for serving
Directions
  1. Prepare the porcelet: Preheat the oven to 350º. In a medium bowl, mix the ground pork, apples, salt, sage, thyme, ginger, sugar, cinnamon and white pepper thoroughly to incorporate.
  2. On a cutting board, lay out the porcelet, skin-side down. Remove the ribs and any bones, leaving you with the pork belly and attached loin. Using a sharp knife, trim the pork belly, leaving ¾ inch of meat attached to the skin. Season the inside of the belly with salt, then spread the ground pork mixture along the center of the belly above the loin.
  3. Starting from the loin, roll the porcelet tightly into a log, then tie with butcher's twine into a roast.
  4. In a roasting pan, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Sear the porcelet roast, turning as needed, until golden brown, 12 to 15 minutes. Cook in the oven until a thermometer inserted through one of the ends reads 140º, 1 hour and 15 minutes to 1 hour and 30 minutes. Make sure you are getting a read from the ground pork mixture since that is the center.
  5. Meanwhile, braise the cabbage: In a large pot or Dutch oven, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add the cabbage and cook, stirring constantly, until wilted, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the wine, vinegar, sugar, salt and pepper, and bring to a simmer. Reduce the heat to medium low and cook, covered, until the cabbage is tender but still has a firmness to it, 12 to 15 minutes. Set aside until ready to reheat for plating.
  6. Make the roast apples and turnips: In a large skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of the oil over medium-high heat. Add the turnips and cook, flipping as needed, until the turnips are golden brown and tender, 8 to 10 minutes. Transfer to a sheet pan.
  7. To the skillet, add the remaining tablespoon of oil over medium-high heat. Add the apples and cook, turning as needed until golden brown and tender, 4 to 5 minutes. Transfer to the sheet pan with the turnips. Toss the turnips and apples with the sage leaves and butter, then season with salt and pepper. Set aside, then flash-heat the sheet pan in the oven for 5 minute before you are ready to plate.
  8. Make the sauce: Transfer the cooked porcelet to a cutting board and tent with foil; let rest for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, transfer the pan drippings to a measuring cup to allow the fat to separate.
  9. Pour off most of the fat, so you are left with ½ cup of pan drippings. Whisk in the mustards and season with salt. As you carve the roast into 1-inch slices, add any drippings on the board to the sauce, adjusting the seasoning as needed.
  10. Fan out the pork slices on a serving board over the braised cabbage and alongside the roast apples and turnips, apple butter, and remaining sauce, then serve.