A pork loin roast is a nice change of pace from the chops that are our usual pork fare. Roasts are just so low-maintenance — prep them, put them in the oven, and do something else until they’re done.
I recently bought a miniature pork loin roast (think toy roast) that was just the right size for the Culinary Enthusiast and me to enjoy in its entirety for dinner. I didn’t have any particular plans for it (beyond eating it), so this was a fly-by-the-seat-of-what’s-in-the-pantry meal. My mind first went to the pork roast with quartre-épices and other good things that I wrote about at New Year’s, but I’ve made that twice in the last few months. It’s delicious, but it was time to broaden my horizons. A scan of the fridge turned up some fresh thyme and sage that needed to be used up, and three-quarters of a red onion lolling about behind the tub of yogourt.
So, chop-chop-chop and the onion was converted into a rack, along with some thyme sprigs for good measure. I stripped the leaves from quite a few more sprigs of thyme, and minced them together with a small handful of sage leaves. I’m sorry to tell you that I didn’t measure anything for this “recipe” so I suppose I can’t rightly use that term. Let’s call this a “story” instead. I can tell you that I probably had about twice as much sage as thyme. The overall amount was based on my laser keen judgment of how much would be needed to cover the top of the roast. Once the herbs were finely minced, I put them in a bowl, added a good amount of freshly ground pepper and a bit of kosher salt. A splash of olive oil (by which I mean about a tablespoon) helped bind everything when I stirred the herby green concoction. The last step was to lavish the thyme and sage spread over the top of the roast that was now sitting on its oniony bed.
After about 80 minutes at 350ºF and the most glorious aromas wafting around the house, the roast had reached an internal temperature of 155ºF. Done to my liking! I let it rest, then sliced it thinly and drizzled some of the drippings over it. We ate the pork with farm-fresh asparagus, roasted with olive oil and lemon.
A simple, satisfying meal. The best kind, wouldn’t you agree?
