Mirror, mirror on the wall — who has the fairest roast of all?
This royal crown of pork, rubbed with fragrant herbs and paired with caramelised, sultana-stuffed apples, brings a touch of wicked indulgence to your Halloween feast.
servings
For the roast
- 2 racks about 2–3kg / 16 ribs pork ribs, French-trimmed (ask your butcher)
- 60 ml olive oil
- 30 ml fennel seeds
- 3–4 fresh sage leaves chopped
- Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
For the baked apples
- 6–8 apples
- 75 g sultanas
- 45 g butter
- 3–4 fresh sage leaves chopped
- Honey to drizzle
- Preheat the oven to 150°C.
- Using a larding needle or skewer, thread kitchen twine through the ends of both pork racks and tie together to form a crown. Rub all over with olive oil.
- Grind the fennel seeds, sage, salt and pepper together and rub into the meat. Place on a rack in a large roasting tin and roast for 1 hour.
- For the baked apples, cut off the tops and core the apples, keeping the tops aside.
- Combine sultanas, butter, sage and honey, season well, and stuff the apples. Replace the tops and drizzle with honey.
- Increase oven temperature to 180°C, add the apples to the roasting tin, and roast for another 30 minutes until golden and the pork reaches 160°C internal temperature.
- Remove from the oven, rest for 20 minutes, cut off the string, and serve with the apples and pan juices.
