When it comes to wild hog, the small ones are sweeter.
My husband shot a hog last year, and the meat is kind of hanging out in my freezer because I really have no idea what to do with pork. I decided I finally needed to buck up and just take the plunge and make some pork loin.
As chance should have it, I also had this half bottle of rosé cava hanging out in my fridge because when I bought it, I thought it was a sparkling red. It turns out that a sparkling red is more elusive than I thought. While the bottle very clearly said it was a sparkling “pinot noir,” when I opened it was not a sparkling red but a rosé. Needless to say, we didn’t finish the bottle, but I spent enough on it that I wanted to do SOMETHING with it. As it turns out, it turned into a lovely berry sauce for pork.
For my sauce, I used a mixture of blackberries and raspberries, based on what was on sale and what was going bad in my fridge. (There seems to be a theme here with this dish… how to gussy up stuff that’s going bad in your fridge!) Really, you can use whatever suits your fancy or whatever happens to be going bad in your fridge, even if it’s not berries. I bet a champagne pear sauce would also be lovely. The sauce ended up being bright and tart; almost too tart, which is why I added the sugar. Be sure to taste your sauce and add sugar to your liking before smothering your pork with it.
My pork loins were quite small since they came from a baby pig (“the smaller ones are sweeter” my husband says). I used a meat thermometer and they cooked up in about 10 minutes. If you are making this with a regular-sized pork loin, you will obviously need to cook it longer. The sauce recipe is enough for a regular sized pork loin so need for adjustment there. I ended up having way too much leftover. I also highly suggested making a fancy pattern on the plate with the sauce, because doesn’t it look nice?
Rosemary Pork Loin with Champagne Berry Sauce
Print recipeIngredients
- 1 teaspoon fresh rosemary (finely ground in a spice grinder or finely minced)
- 2 teaspoons salt (or to taste)
- 1 tablespoon black pepper
- 4 cartons berries
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1 shallot or 1/4 red onion (finely chopped)
- 1 clove garlic (finely chopped)
- 1/4-1/3 cup sugar (or to taste)
For the Pork Loin
- 2lb pork loin
champagne raspberry sauce
- 1 cup rose or regular champagne
Non-game substitution: Use a regular pork loin. The raspberry sauce would also go well drizzled over roasted chicken.
Leave a Reply
Be the First to Comment!