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Why not walk on the wild side and serve your traditional pork roast with exotic persimmon sauce? Tender and juicy pork roast rubbed with a herb, flower and seed mix will be sure to impress your friends and family!
Check out our Christmas Collection for more recipes fit for the holidays!
When it comes to a Christmas dinner planning I feel both giddy with excitement and torn into a million of different directions. Forget choosing what trimmings to cook, I can’t even zero in on my main hero!
Turkey, duck, goose, beef, pork…seriously at this point in time they are all still contenders for the main part. However one thing is sure; whatever type of meat I choose it will be most certainly roasted.
Roasting is my favourite method of cooking and pork roasts happen to be the easiest, most forgiving meat I’ve come across. I love what oven cooking at high temperatures can achieve.
Meat tender and juicy on the inside with crispy crackling on the outside. Just so good!
Best tasting pork roast
I don’t often splurge on really high quality meat, not because I don’t value it but mostly because I am always conscious of the costs. But this is for Christmas so I am going to get something really good and go easy on add-ons for the pork flavour to truly shine.
To let the wonderful meat shine, all I did was rolled the pork shoulder in a herb, flower and seed mix my friend brought me from Scotland.
When I finally pulled out my pork roast out of the oven I was not disappointed. It turned out so tender, juicy and flavourful!!
I also took inspiration from a plum sauce, often served with pork roasts in England, and created my own seasonal persimmon sauce.
Persimmon sauce
In some parts of the world, persimmon is associated with autumn. Taste one and you’ll get a sense why. They are jammy, delicate and taste of honey and melon. Good, no?
Technically persimmon is a berry, originating in China but now very common in Japan and both Koreas. The colour can vary widely, and both astringent and non-astringent varieties can be found.
The one used for this recipe is fuyu, which is non-astringent and the most common variety. It will look similar to a tomato with colouring that can range from dark orange to warm yellow.
Just make sure your persimmons are very ripe or the sauce will be ruined. Underripe persimmons taste chalky and have a bitter tinge to them.
But when you happen to be patient enough and cut into a perfectly right persimmon, there is no fruit comparable in fragrance and sweetness. No wonder in some countries it is known as the honey fruit.
Recipe Tips and Notes
- Be sure to use ripe persimmons. If not ripe, they will have a chalky and bitter taste and miss out on the right sweetness for the sauce.
- Be sure to tie the pork roast with string. This helps keep it moist when roasting.
- The slits in the pork are really important and allow the rub to penetrate the meat. It will help make the roast more flavourful throughout.
- Let the pork roast rest for 20 minutes before cutting it. This allows the meat to re-absorb the juices and makes it more tender and flavourful.
- One of the tricks to avoid dry pork roasts is using an instant This is an affiliate link.meat thermometer, so you don’t overcook it since oven temperatures and the size of roasts vary.
- And while it’s great to rely on a particular recipe for cooking times you should also check the internal temperature, which should read around 145F/70C for pork. I am so glad it officially got lowered from 160F because it often resulted in dry pork roast and who wants that!!
Serving suggestions
I really hope you get to try this delicious recipe over the holidays, or whenever the idea of a warming pork roast strikes your fancy.
While you are at it, trying paring with delicious rosemary potatoes au gratin! Or, for another take on this old classic, how about Butternut Squash Gratin?
Or possibly dive even deeper and check out our whole collection of Christmas side dishes!
Storage and leftovers
Heaps of leftovers are one of the great gifts of holiday meals, and mean your next few days can be relaxing as you enjoy meals already made.
Leftover pork roast can be kept for 3-4 days in a refrigerator. Cover with plastic wrap or place in an airtight container.
If you choose to freeze leftover pork, keep it wrapped tightly and in a freezer for up to three months. While it can be stored longer, the quality will start to go downhill.
More holiday main courses
- Honey Mustard Crusted Prime Rib Rost
- Roast Turkey
- Blackcurrant Compote Glazed Ham
- Baked Salmon with Rose Wine Cream Sauce
Pork Roast with Warm Persimmon Sauce
Ingredients
For the pork roast
- 1.5 kg/3 lbs pork shoulder roast
- 2 tbsp herb mix of your choice (rosemary, thyme, garlic, etc.)
- 1 tbsp sea salt
For the warm persimmon sauce
- 3 persimmons, very ripe
- 50 g/1/4 cup sugar
- 125 ml/ 1/2 cup water
- 1/4 tsp chilli flakes, optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to the highest temperature. Take your pork out of the fridge 30 minutes before cooking. Remove all packaging and score the skin with a sharp knife.
- Rub your favourite herb and sea salt mix all over, making sure it goes inside the slits in the skin, put in a roasting tray and inside the oven.
- Immediately turn the temperature down to 450F/220C. Roast for 1.5 hours until the internal temperature of the pork reads 145F/65C.
- While the pork is in the oven prepare the sauce by combining water, sugar and peeled and chopped persimmons in a small saucepan, bring to a boil and let it simmer over low heat for 10 minutes until it thickens. Add chilli flakes for some heat if desired.
- When the pork roast is done, cut the crackling off and slice it separately with a very sharp knife.
- Serve sliced pork with warm persimmon sauce.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Can you share herb mix you used on pork, please
Hi Edita, I used a flower, herb and seed mix that was gifted to me. It’s not from a supermarket but here is what’s in the mix: parsley, rosemary, tarragon, thyme, sage, dill, flower petals, chives, sea salt and seeds-poppy, sesame and celery. I hope this helps!
looks delicious, will be trying this! x
Something new and different to try lovely x
Looks beautiful