Lidias Family Table Braised Pork Shoulder With Onions Recipes

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325°F.
• Score fat and any skin on pork in a crosshatch pattern. Make slits all over meat with a small sharp knife and insert a garlic sliver in each slit. Pat pork dry and season with salt and pepper.
• Heat oil in a 4- to 5-quart ovenproof heavy pot over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking, then brown meat on all sides, turning occasionally with the aid of tongs and a carving fork, about 8 minutes. Transfer pork to a plate.
• Add onions to pot and sauté over moderately high heat, stirring occasionally, until softened and starting to turn golden, about 5 minutes. Add 3/4 teaspoon salt and sauté, stirring occasionally, until onions are golden and caramelized, 8 to 10 minutes more.
• Stir in cider and return pork to pot.
• Cover pot with a tight-fitting lid and braise pork in middle of oven until very tender, 2 1/2 to 3 hours.
• Transfer pork to a serving dish with the aid of tongs and carving fork. Boil cooking juices with onions until mixture is reduced to about 2 cups, 2 to 3 minutes, then season with salt and pepper and serve with pork.

Steps:

• Mince bacon and garlic together into a fine pestata. chop the carrot, celery and onion separately Rinse and dry the pork, then sprinkle half teaspoon salt lightly on all surfaces, patting it on. Pour the oil into the braising pan and set it over medium heat. Before it gets hot, lay the pork in and brown it-lightly-turning it after a minute or so on each side. While the meat is browning, scrape the pestata into the pan bottom; spread it out and let the bacon begin to render. Drop in peperoncino now, if you want some heat in the salsa; toast it in the pan bottom. After 3 minutes or so of browning the pork, drop the tomato paste into the fat; stir and caramelize a minute. Dump the shredded carrot and celery into the pan bottom; stir for a minute just to get them cooking. (Keep turning the meat so it browns evenly and slowly.) Now scrape the chopped onions into the pan around the meat. Sprinkle the remaining coarse salt over the onions; raise the heat a bit, stirring the onions up from the bottom and mixing them with the oil, pestata and tomato. Cook on medium high heat for about 5 minutes until the onions are starting to sweat. Cover and turn the heat to medium-low. The pork is now going to cook for about 3 hours. Leave it alone for the first 45 minutes, then uncover, turn the meat and stir the onions. They should be wilting and releasing liquid; if there is any sign of burning, lower the heat. Cover and cook for another 45 minutes, turn the meat and stir the onions. They should be quite reduced in volume, in a thick simmering sauce. Stir in 2 cups of hot broth, bringing the liquid higher around the pork. Cook covered for another 45 minutes, then stir. If the sauce level has dropped a lot and is beginning to stick, stir in another cup or 2 of broth. Taste and add more salt, if necessary. Cover and cook another 1/2 hour to 45". consistency of the onions-they should be melting into the sauce and the meat should be soft when pierced with a fork.