Mind-Blowing Milk-Braised Pork
2016-02-12 12:07:09
Serves 8
Milk braising meat is a fantastic way to make it sweet, tender and succulent!
Ingredients
- 3-5 lbs. pork shoulder
- kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
- fresh thyme, chopped
- 1-2 heads garlic
- 1 head fennel
- 1 lemon
- sprigs of thyme
- 2-3 bay leaves
- 1 gallon milk
Instructions
- Buy the highest quality pork shoulder available, de-boned, bone in or tied into a roast - it doesn't matter. Rub the pork generously with salt, pepper and chopped thyme. Let it sit uncovered in your refrigerator overnight.
- The next day, remove it from the refrigerator and let it rest on the counter for at least an hour. Preheat your oven to 325°.
- Place the room temperature pork in a deep cast iron skillet or heavy oven safe pan. Add 1-2 heads of garlic sliced in half crosswise to expose the core, a head of roughly chopped fennel, a few slices of lemon, a few sprigs of thyme and a couple bay leaves. Pour milk into the skillet until approximately half of the shoulder is submerged. You won't use all of the milk now, but will be adding it in as the pork cooks and the milk dissipates.
- Place it in the pre-heated oven and let it braise uncovered for about four hours. Every 30-45 minutes turn the shoulder over into the milk so that the surface that was exposed to the heat is now submerged in the milk. Baste generously and add more milk as needed.
- By the fourth or fifth flip, the milk will break down and the meat will start to caramelize. This is what makes this meat so tender and delicious! Pierce the meat at the thickest point with a sharp knife to test it's doneness. It should slide in and out without any resistance when it is done.
Notes
- I didn't need to use all of the milk so I used some of it as a cooking liquid to cook cauliflower and yukon potatoes for a puree to serve with the pork. It went fantastic together!
Adapted from The San Luis Obispo Farmers' Market Cookbook
Adapted from The San Luis Obispo Farmers' Market Cookbook
Delish-dish blog https://www.delish-dish.com/