Delicious Sunday Pork Roast with Sweet Potatoes and Leeks
As the Christmas song says… “It’s the most wonderful time of the year!”. And we couldn’t agree more. Decorating our tiny house with Christmas ornaments and lights was one of our favorite things we did, recently.
The other favorite thing was baking all these wonderful and delicious traditional Greek Christmas sweets: diples, melomakarona and kourabiedes have already taken their place on the kitchen’s countertop ready to be served as a welcome treat to guests (if they survive our own sugar cravings).
The pork shoulder
So, between making a new batch of melomakarona and diples we have decided to try out a recipe with pork, sweet potatoes and leeks. It’s a combination we haven’t tried before but at the time, near Christmas, when pork is very popular in Greek tables, it sounded quite fitting.
We gave this a try by marinading the meat (we are not fans of the intense meaty flavor of a n-non-marinated pork) and then oven-roasting it with the veggies. Well, needless to say that the result was a big delicious surprise!
This recipe can be made with pork leg as well, but we totally recommend the pork shoulder since it’s more tender due to the fat that it contains. Plus, the taste is far superior.
The recipe
Well, this recipe is being posted during the Holiday season, but it’s a dish that can be easily served throughout the year. It makes for an excellent family Sunday lunch or a main for any special occasion such as anniversaries, birthdays and festivities of any sort.
The same goes for the other pork recipes we have on the blog of course, that we think you might find interesting as well, such as the Pork Roast with plums, rosemary and dark beer and the Greek Pork and Celery Stew (Hirino me Selino).
The pork will taste better if you decide to marinade it first. The marinade we suggest, tones down the intense flavor of meatiness that sometimes pork has. So, put the pork chunks in a plastic bag with a zip lock into the fridge, for at least 3 hours before cooking. Even better if you decide to let it stay overnight. The marinade also adds flavor to the final result since the pork is added on the roasting tin without washing out the marinade, and of course it makes the meat more tender.
We also suggest that you add the honey we mention in the ingredients. It adds sweetness and depth to the final result.
Serving the dish
A green salad will be a perfect match with this dish. You can also have some extra mustard on the side for the pork. Preferably a Dijon mustard.
Overall this is a one-pan recipe that is easy to make, with no fuss and we believe that it can become one of your family’s favorite Sunday meals. It can easily become part of your comfort food list.
Let’s see now how you can make this delightful dish!
- 1kg (35oz), pork shoulder (or leg) cut into large chunks
- 500-600g (17oz/3 large), leeks cut in half lengthwise and then in thick slices
- 1kg (35oz/3 medium-sized), sweet potatoes, cut into bites
- 1/2 cup (125ml), white wine
- 1/4 cup (60ml), apple cider vinegar
- 3/4 cup (180ml), extra virgin olive oil
- 1 tbsp thyme, dried
- 2 tbsp marjoram, dried
- 1 ½ -2 tbsp honey (optional but highly recommended)
- 1 tbsp salt
- 1 tsp black pepper
For the marinade
- 1/4 cup (60ml), apple cider vinegar
- 1/4 cup (60ml), extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tbsp yellow mustard
- 1 tsp thyme, dried
- 1 tsp salt
Preparation:
Cut the leeks lengthwise and then slice in 1 ½ inch / 3-4 cm pieces making sure to remove most of the green end of the leek. Rinse in a colander and set aside. Peel and cut the sweet potatoes into bites and set aside.
For the marinade
Add the mustard and the apple cider vinegar in a bowl, and whisk until the mustard is dissolved (pic.1). Add the olive oil, the herbs, the salt (pic.2) and whisk.
At this point a thick marinade will be formed (pic.3). Cut the pork shoulder into large chunks and place them into a plastic bag with a zip lock. Add the marinade (pic.4). Make sure all pork chunks are covered with it.
Close the bag (pic.5) and place it in the fridge for at least 3 hours to marinade. Ideally you can marinade the pork overnight.
At this point preheat the oven at 180°C / 357°F (convection oven-fan assisted).
For the pork shoulder
In a bowl add the honey (if using it) and the apple cider vinegar (pic. 6). Add the white wine (pic.7).
Stir until the honey is completely dissolved (pic.8). Add the herbs, the salt and the pepper (pic.9).
Whisk until fully combined (pic.10) and add the olive oil (pic.11).
Whisk thoroughly until the oil is incorporated (pic.12). In a roasting tin add the sweet potatoes, the leeks and the pork shoulder. Pour the vinegar-wine-oil mixture into the pan (pic.13).
Using your hands mix everything together (pic.14) until the meat and the veggies are completely coated (pic.15).
Cover the pan with aluminum foil (pic.16) and place into the oven. Cook at 180°C / 357°F (fan assisted) for 50 minutes. Uncover, toss gently (pic.17) and continue cooking for another 50 minutes, depending on your oven. Half way through, toss the veggies and the meat one more time.
Since the baking time depends on your oven, check and verify that everything has been roasted according to your liking and serve. Kali oreksi!
1. Prefer using pork shoulder, instead of pork leg as it will be more tender (and less dry).
2. We totally recommend using honey in the vinegar-wine-oil mixture. It adds some sweetness and depth of flavor.
3. This dish makes for an excellent Sunday family lunch. You can also serve this as a main dish in any festive or special occasion.
4. A green salad will be a perfect match with this dish. You can also have some extra mustard on the side for the pork. Preferably a Dijon mustard.
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