Pork

Roast pork came round again a week or so ago. Mainly in the form of rolled shoulder, but with a small slab of something called baby back ribs to warm up with ta few days beforehand, bought by chance, having spotted it in the display. This slab being around 5 inches wide, 12 inches long and maybe an inch deep. Mainly a series of short bits of rib, but with enough meat in between to make a reasonable meal for two. Roasted for maybe 45 minutes. I forget what we took it with, but it was rather good. That is to say without the red goo which public houses are apt to pour over such things.

While the pork proper weighed in at 4lbs and 8oz. First step was to consult the precedents, to be found at references 1 and 2. The decision was 160°C at 10:00 for 13:00, including 15 minutes resting. With it actually getting in at 10:10. Plenty of salt rubbed into the crackling.

Added some carrots and parsnips at 12:30, at which point the crackling was starting to crackle. Not much fat at the bottom of the dish, but enough to baste the joint and the vegetables.

Taken with boiled potatoes and what passes these days for spring greens, these last nothing like as prominent in the shops of today as they would have been in greengrocers of old. Pretty good, except that the carrots were a little underdone, certainly compared with the parsnips. Should have cut them lengthwise. But the spring greens were very good, despite being sold in a plastic bag by Sainsbury's.

What was left of the joint.

Taken, for a change, with a spot of a 2015 Spätburgunder, that is to say a German red, the wine bought in the margins of the visit to Hampton Court noticed at reference 3. From the people at reference 4. We rather liked it, well up to expectations. Furthermore, for once in a while, the wine from the shop is to be found on the website, at reference 5.

For dessert, we had two slices of cake which had been sold off a folding table next to the post box up the road by a couple of very young ladies in aid of Ukraine. Cakes actually having been made or bought by Mum.

Lunch completed, we gave some thought to seaside destinations for overnight outings, and were pleased to find that the compilers of the Britannica Atlas knew all about the importance of Epsom in the scheme of things. Although not so pleased to find that we were on a par with places like Deptford.

A fine lunch, but I am sorry to have to report that I went on to lose at Scrabble by far too large a margin. For what appears to be the second day running. Perhaps I had run out of Calvados.

References

Reference 1: https://psmv5.blogspot.com/2022/01/festal-pork.html.

Reference 2: http://psmv4.blogspot.com/2020/11/lenquete-porcine.html.

Reference 3: https://psmv5.blogspot.com/2022/04/off-to-palace.html.

Reference 4: https://www.weingutfritzwassmer.de/en/winery/.

Reference 5: https://www.weingutfritzwassmer.de/en/wein/spaetburgunder-xxl-4/.