Roast Loin of Pork with Crispy Crackling and Roasted Apples

Roast Loin of Pork with Crispy Crackling and Roasted Apples

We were fortunate enough to win a meat raffle Friday night, and one of our prizes was this pork roast already rolled and tied, ready for roasting to get the perfect crackle on top. Normally I prefer to throw my roasts in the slow cooker and shred the meat afterwards, but this was so easy to make, and it came out just perfect, so tasty and not at all dry. Hubby definitely thought it was a winner, too. I’m not a big fan of cracking, but I had to admit this was good, and so crispy! The higher temperature in the first half hour helps to ensure it crisps up perfectly.

The roast itself is, of course, low-carb as prepared. If you want the entire meal to be low-carb, omit the apples (they run about 22g carbs each) and serve with lower-carb, non-root veggies. Either way, we think you’ll really enjoy this.

Ingredients:

• 1.7 kg / 3.75 lb boned loin of pork
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 2 teaspoons sea salt
• 6-8 small apples, washed, dried (e.g. Golden Delicious or Granny Smith)
• olive oil cooking spray

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 220°C / 428°F. My roast was already scored, rolled and tied – ready to season and roast. If yours isn’t just use a sharp knife to score the skin at 1cm intervals, roll it into a log shape and tie in several places with cooking string to secure. Rub skin with oil and sea salt. Place pork onto a rack in a large greased baking dish. Roast for 30 minutes.
2. Reduce heat to 200°C / 392°F. Roast pork for a further 30 minutes.
3. Lightly spray apples with oil. Season well with salt and pepper. Arrange apples in roasting pan with pork. Roast apples with pork for a further 20 to 30 minutes or until pork is just cooked through and skin is golden and crispy. Transfer pork and apples to a carving plate. Stand for 10 minutes.
4. Remove string from pork. Slice pork. Serve with apples.