Roasted Pork in White Wine with Garlic, Fennel & Rosemary

  Posted on December 31, 2009  by Leslie Blythe  4 comments

Pork Out Tonight!

I am catering a New Year’s eve party, which I do every year. It is for a very good friend of mine, so it’s half work and mostly fun. This year the guest list ballooned to 80 – 100, it’s usually around 50. I am making huge amounts of roast pork. I hope her ovens work! I have always had issues with her ovens! Below is the recipe I am using. I have never tried it, shhh – don’t tell anyone and wish me luck!

Roasted Pork in White Wine with Garlic, Fennel & Rosemary

Serves 6

1 – 3 lb pork loin, off the bone and skin removed
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 Tbs fennel seeds
4 Tbs butter
Olive oil
8 cloves garlic, skin left on
1 handful fresh rosemary, leaves picked
4 bay leaves
1 fennel bulb, sliced
1/2 bottle Chardonnay

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

With 2 or 3 bits of string, tie up your pork loin, do this any way you like. It doesn’t have to be fussy, you just want to keep the meat in a snug shape while it’s cooking. Season generously with salt and pepper, then roll the meat in the fennel seeds until covered.

In a casserole pan or roasting tray, fry the meat for a couple of minutes in half the butter and a little olive oil, until nice and golden.

Throw in the garlic, herbs, fennel, and wine, then cover the tray loosely with some wet greaseproof paper and cook until an inserted meat thermometer reaches 150 degrees F. As the pork loin is off the bone it cooks very quickly. Remove from the oven and allow the meat to rest on a plate. Then, without using any more heat, finish off your sauce in the pan, scraping any goodness off the bottom and adding the rest of the butter. Remove any large bits.