There’s something so pleasingly old-school about flattening something,
stuffing it, rolling it, and tying it. While this might all seem intimidating, I’m
a true believer that if you can tie your shoe, you can tie a roast. Try this for
your next special-occasion dinner—say, when your in-laws come over or it’s
a good friend’s birthday . . . or even, “Yay, it’s Friday!” The small victories
here—how to butterfly the pork loin (you can ask your butcher to do it, but it
is easy to do yourself) and how to tie it up—are good tricks to have up your
sleeve for any stuffed and tied dish you might want to try (chicken Cordon
Bleu, anyone?). You could also make this with two butterflied pork
tenderloins instead of a whole pork loin (be sure to cut the roasting time in
half).
2 garlic cloves
1 cup [40 g] fresh Italian parsley leaves
1 /4 cup [10 g] fresh basil leaves
1 Tbsp fresh thyme leaves
3 oz [85 g] cream cheese, at room temperature
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
One 3-to 4-lb [1.4-to 1.8-kg] pork loin
2 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
1 /4 cup [60 ml] white wine, chicken stock, or water
Preheat your oven to 400°F [200°C]
With the food processor running, drop the garlic into the feed tube and process until finely chopped. Add the parsley, basil, and thyme and pulse until everything is finely chopped. Add the cream cheese, 1 tsp salt, and a few grinds of pepper and pulse until everything is well combined. Set the mixture aside.
Put the pork loin, fat-side down, on your work surface with one of the short ends pointing toward you. Using a sharp chef’s knife, hold it parallel to the board and make a sharp incision along the length of the pork, cutting into the meat about 1 /2 in [12 mm]. Continue to slice into the meat while lifting the top part with your other hand until the pork loin is opened out and totally flat and about 1 in [2.5 cm] thick.
Season the newly exposed side of the pork aggressively with salt. Spread the cream cheese mixture over the pork, using your hands or a rubber spatula.
Starting from a short side, roll the pork up tightly so that it resembles its old self, this time with the herb mixture spiraled throughout it. Lay five 12-in [30.5-cm] pieces of kitchen string about 1 in [2.5 cm] apart on your work surface and carefully lift the pork and put it on top of the string, seam-side down. Tie the pieces of string tightly around the pork loin so that it is even and compact. Trim off the excess string
Transfer the pork, fat-side up, to a large baking dish and drizzle the olive oil over it. Sprinkle the pork with a generous pinch of salt and a few grinds of pepper. Pour the wine around the pork.
Roast the pork until it is browned, is firm to the touch, and registers 145°F [63°C] when you test it in the thickest part with an instant-read thermometer, 1 to 1 1 /2 hours depending on the thickness of meat (start testing it at 1 hour). Transfer the pork to a cutting board and cover it loosely with aluminum foil.
Let the pork rest for 10 minutes, then cut off and discard the string. Slice the pork, arrange on a serving platter, and spoon over some of the pan juices. Serve immediately.
NOTE: If you’re using a pork tenderloin instead of a whole pork loin, since it’s smaller, you can flatten it more easily. Simply slice the pork lengthwise in half, without cutting through the entire loin, so that you can open it up like a book. Cover the pork with plastic wrap and use a meat mallet or a small heavy pot to pound the meat until it’s an even 1 in [2.5 cm] thick. This is a good way of flattening other types of protein too, especially chicken breasts and beef tenderloins.
SPIN-OFFS
LEFTOVER PORK can be sliced and crisped in a hot skillet slicked with a little olive oil. This makes for an excellent and hearty breakfast alongside runny fried eggs . The crisped pork also makes for a great filling for a sandwich on a soft roll piled with arugula that’s been dressed with a lot of bright, fresh lemon juice.
FOR PORK THAT’S SALTIMBOCCA-ISH, season the flattened pork with salt and pepper and then lay over an even layer of sage leaves and thinly sliced prosciutto. Roll it up, lay some more sliced prosciutto on top, and then tie it and roast it.
2 garlic cloves
1 cup [40 g] fresh Italian parsley leaves
1 /4 cup [10 g] fresh basil leaves
1 Tbsp fresh thyme leaves
3 oz [85 g] cream cheese, at room temperature
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
One 3-to 4-lb [1.4-to 1.8-kg] pork loin
2 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
1 /4 cup [60 ml] white wine, chicken stock, or water
Preheat your oven to 400°F [200°C]
With the food processor running, drop the garlic into the feed tube and process until finely chopped. Add the parsley, basil, and thyme and pulse until everything is finely chopped. Add the cream cheese, 1 tsp salt, and a few grinds of pepper and pulse until everything is well combined. Set the mixture aside.
Put the pork loin, fat-side down, on your work surface with one of the short ends pointing toward you. Using a sharp chef’s knife, hold it parallel to the board and make a sharp incision along the length of the pork, cutting into the meat about 1 /2 in [12 mm]. Continue to slice into the meat while lifting the top part with your other hand until the pork loin is opened out and totally flat and about 1 in [2.5 cm] thick.
Season the newly exposed side of the pork aggressively with salt. Spread the cream cheese mixture over the pork, using your hands or a rubber spatula.
Starting from a short side, roll the pork up tightly so that it resembles its old self, this time with the herb mixture spiraled throughout it. Lay five 12-in [30.5-cm] pieces of kitchen string about 1 in [2.5 cm] apart on your work surface and carefully lift the pork and put it on top of the string, seam-side down. Tie the pieces of string tightly around the pork loin so that it is even and compact. Trim off the excess string
Transfer the pork, fat-side up, to a large baking dish and drizzle the olive oil over it. Sprinkle the pork with a generous pinch of salt and a few grinds of pepper. Pour the wine around the pork.
Roast the pork until it is browned, is firm to the touch, and registers 145°F [63°C] when you test it in the thickest part with an instant-read thermometer, 1 to 1 1 /2 hours depending on the thickness of meat (start testing it at 1 hour). Transfer the pork to a cutting board and cover it loosely with aluminum foil.
Let the pork rest for 10 minutes, then cut off and discard the string. Slice the pork, arrange on a serving platter, and spoon over some of the pan juices. Serve immediately.
NOTE: If you’re using a pork tenderloin instead of a whole pork loin, since it’s smaller, you can flatten it more easily. Simply slice the pork lengthwise in half, without cutting through the entire loin, so that you can open it up like a book. Cover the pork with plastic wrap and use a meat mallet or a small heavy pot to pound the meat until it’s an even 1 in [2.5 cm] thick. This is a good way of flattening other types of protein too, especially chicken breasts and beef tenderloins.
SPIN-OFFS
LEFTOVER PORK can be sliced and crisped in a hot skillet slicked with a little olive oil. This makes for an excellent and hearty breakfast alongside runny fried eggs . The crisped pork also makes for a great filling for a sandwich on a soft roll piled with arugula that’s been dressed with a lot of bright, fresh lemon juice.
FOR PORK THAT’S SALTIMBOCCA-ISH, season the flattened pork with salt and pepper and then lay over an even layer of sage leaves and thinly sliced prosciutto. Roll it up, lay some more sliced prosciutto on top, and then tie it and roast it.
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