Braised Pork Roast with Warm Apple-Onion Chutney

The sweet potatoes I wrote about last time are delicious all fall and winter long. Try them with this braised pork roast and apple-onion chutney, a dish I’ve developed through trial and error over the years.

Braised Pork Roast with Warm Apple-Onion Chutney
1 4- to 5-lb boneless pork shoulder roast
3 cloves garlic
whole cloves
kosher salt and freshly-ground black pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil
¾ cup sweet Marsala, chicken broth, or vegetable broth
2 large tart or sweet-tart apples
1 medium onion
1 celery rib, with leaves
4 tablespoons butter
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
¼ teaspoon grated nutmeg
¼ teaspoon ground cloves
¼ teaspoon dried thyme leaves or 1 to 2 stems fresh thyme, leaves removed from stems
¼ teaspoon freshly-ground black pepper
¼ cup sweet Marsala or apple cider
¼ cup orange marmalade
kosher salt to taste

Heat the oven to 325˚. Peel the garlic and slice into slivers. Use the tip of a sharp knife to make slits all over the roast; insert a garlic sliver into each slit. Insert cloves all over roast. Season roast with salt and pepper. Heat a Dutch oven over medium-high heat and add the olive oil. When it shimmers, put in the roast and brown it on all sides, 8 to 10 minutes total. Remove the roast to a platter. Pour in the Marsala or broth and stir, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom. Return the roast to the pot, insert a probe thermometer, cover the pot and put it in the oven. Roast until the thermometer registers 150˚, about 2 ½ to 3 hours. Allow the meat to rest, covered, until it reaches 160˚, while you make the chutney.

Peel, core, and dice the apples and dice the onion and celery. Melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium heat; add the apples, vegetables, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, thyme and black pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, about 5 minutes, until apples and vegetables begin to soften, but not brown. Pour in Marsala or apple cider, and stir in orange marmalade. Cook, stirring occasionally, about 10 minutes, until the apples and vegetables are tender and the flavors have melded. Season with a little kosher salt.

To serve, thinly slice the pork roast and transfer to a serving platter. Spoon some of the pan juices around the meat. Spoon some of the chutney across the top. Serve the remaining chutney on the side.