This is another one of the dishes I have learnt from my mom. She used to make it often on Sundays and it is a fantastic and juicy roast. I guess apples and pork are a classic combination, but it is one that I never get tired of. The sweetness of the apples goes very well with the tanginess of the white wine and it helps make a great sauce. The addition of prunes gives the sauce a hint of caramelisation which to me is always a plus. You can serve it with mash, a green salad or my baked potatoes with garlic and rosemary. Buon appetito!
Ingredients (serves about 6):
1 kg – 2.2 lbs pork scotch fillet roast
¾ tbsp salt
1tbs rosemary leaves, chopped
½ to 1 tbsp ground pepper (depending on how spicy you like it)
2 cloves garlic, halved
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
½ glass white wine
½ glass water
Butchers’ string (optional)
3 small apples, peeled and sliced (2 cm thick)
20 dried prunes, pitted
Start by making four small cuts in the meat. Insert half a clove of garlic, a pinch of salt and pepper in each cut.
Now you can give the roast a more uniform shape. This is an optional step, the roast will taste just as good without doing this, but it won’t look as “nice”. Using some butchers’ string, tie the roast by knotting the string tightly at one end of the roast and wrapping it tightly all around the meat. Make a knot at the end to secure the string.
Season the roast with the salt, pepper and rosemary leaves.
Place the roast in an oven tray layered with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil.
Add the white wine and water. Bake the roast in a preheated fan forced oven at 220°C for the first 10 minutes, then reduce the heat to 180°C and cook for another 25 minutes.
At this point, put in the sliced apples and prunes and cook for another 15 – 20 minutes or until the meat has cooked through and the apples are soft.
When cooked, let it cool down. Then remove the string and slice. Serve warm with its sauce and the apples & prunes.
Chef Dennis says
What a beautiful pork roast! I love it with the apples and prunes, pork does work so well with fruits and your dish is exceptional!
Now you have me craving pork!
Cheers
Dennis
Frank says
Looks fabulous! I have to remember about scotch fillet pork roasts. Pork is raised so lean these days that it dries out very easily under dry heat. This roast looks beautifully marbled and you can see how it produces a succulent final product… Yum!
Liz says
Girl, you’ve done it again! Fabulous roast and stunning photos! This is what I want for dinner!!!!
Nat says
I´m copying this recipe and passing it along to my aunt who loves to cook on Sundays!!!! This is a perfect meal for Sunday lunch with the fam!!!! Tasty, tasty, tasty!!!
Joan Nova says
I love the sweet-savory combination, especially when prunes are involved. Not only do they add a wonderful flavor, I find they work as a thickener to the sauce when they break down. They work very well with stewed chicken too.
Manu says
Yum! That’s a great idea… I will surely try adding prunes to stewed chicken next time!!! I can already imagine how delicious that would be! Thanks for the tip Joan! 🙂
Curt says
That really is a beautiful roast. I haven’t had prunes in a long time, and baking them with apples and a pork roast sounds really good.
PolaM says
One of my favorite ways of enjoying a pork roast, but I take it a bit further and stuff the prunes in the pork and wrap the roast in bacon….. It turns out delicious!
Alyssa says
A pork roast can be done in many flavors, but I agree, apples and pork are a natural combination. What a great, healthy and comforting meal!
Katherine Martinelli says
Manu this looks delicious! I love the combination of pork and apples and recently I’ve become obsessed by cooking with prunes – I love how they melt and caramelize a little when baked. This looks like my kind of comfort food!
mjskit says
YUMMY! I love the addition of the prunes. You certainly have taken the pork roast with apples to the next level! Sounds like your mom was as good of a chef as you are.
kankana says
You know how much I love to eat pork! This looks just perfect and I am sure it must have tasted awsm.
Jill | Dulce Dough says
Beautiful! I really enjoy apples paired with pork, but I can’t say I have tried prunes with it.
Christina Soong-Kroeger says
This looks absolutely delicious. I love cooking roast pork with whole baked apples but I’ve never thought of using prunes. Will try it your way next time!
purabi naha says
This looks yummy, Manuela! I really liked the way you infused the apples and the herbs into the pork!
Elies_Lie says
This pork roast looks so tender & juicy! Love it!
My hubby will even loves this dish since he is a huge fans of pork! Haha ha!
Bookmark *again*! 😉
Tina@flourtrader says
The method of preparation here as well as all the delicious ingredients no doubt yields an awesome main course. Thank you so much for posting this!
Irena says
Beautiful old fashion dish…love it….fiberlicious:)
https://mywanderingspoon.wordpress.com/2011/09/25/crepes-suzette-kids-friendly-recipe/
chopinandmysaucepan says
We just bought a box of fuji apples over the weekend and were thinking about doing apple crumble. I think I’m gonna go get that piece of pork today instead!
Manu says
Awesome! :-)))))) Let me know how it turns out! :-))))
Beth Michelle says
YUM! This looks so good Manu. I love pork and apples together. Such a classic and delicious combo.
Nami | Just One Cookbook says
WOW – What a great roasted pork! Apples, prunes, and garlic… all the goodies in here. I haven’t cooked that huge chunk of meat before (um maybe a few times). Your are a pro! Learning a lot from you every visit. 😉
Giulietta | Alterkitchen says
Uhm… I love meat with fresh and dried fruits! This pork roast looks amazing!
Lyn says
I’ve been cooking pork my whole life but never try with fruits and this looks so tasty! 😀
Sandra says
Yum-Yum and Yes-Yes. This looks amazing!
Amy says
Did you all cook the meat covered or uncovered?
Manu says
Hi Amy! I cook the roast uncovered 🙂