We ordered a bunch of delicious Iberian Pork from Campo Grande on a whim (by we, I mean my husband). What a good whim it turned out to be because this pork is delicious. Our package came with one small rib roast and I wanted to honor the Spanish heritage of the pork by using some warm spices. I love the combination of ancho chili and smoked paprika so I put together a little spice rub highlighting those flavors and I am feeling pretty smug with how delicious it turned out to be. I think these flavors would go well with any pork, beef, or game such as venison or elk.
For the spice rub:
1 1/2 tsp ancho chili powder
2 tsp smoked paprika
1 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp dried parsley
1/2 tsp ground mixed peppercorns
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp sugar
2 1/2 tsp course ground or flaky sea salt
This rub provided enough to generously coat a 2.5 lb pork roast and have enough leftover to sprinkle over the potatoes I added to the pan. For the rib roast, I pulled the meat out and coated it with 2 tbsp olive oil and about 3/4 of the spice rub mixture. I let it sit out for an hour to come to room temperature and allow the flavors to meld.
Next, I preheated the oven to 425 and coated a cast iron skillet with some olive oil (about 3 tbsp). I threw in some potatoes and swirled them around in the olive oil and the remaining spice rub. I gave the potatoes a 10 minute head start in the oven and allowed the pan to heat up. After 10 minutes I pulled the pan out and moved the potatoes to the outskirts of the pan and added the pork roast to the center (fat side up) and placed it back in the oven. I let the pork sear for about 15 minutes at 425 and then dropped the temperature down to 325 for the remaining cooking time. I am really spoiled and have a thermometer probe that turns the oven off when it has reached the desired temperature. For a good quality pork roast, the ideal temperature is 145. I set the probe to 140 because I know it will finish cooking while it rests. If you aren’t fortunate enough to have this I would start temperature checking after about 25 minutes assuming it will take between 30–40 minutes to finish cooking (but it would be devestating to overcook it). When the pork has reached your desired temperature pull it out and tent it with foil. Be sure to let it rest a solid 10-15 minutes before carving. Let me know what you think!
Comments