Skip to main content
Epicurious
Bon Appétit

Roasted Pork Loin with Fennel

3.3

(8)

This elegant dish would make a lovely entrée for a special-occasion dinner.

Recipe information

  • Yield

    Serves 8

Ingredients

1 cup chopped pancetta or bacon
10 garlic cloves, peeled
2 tablespoons fennel seeds
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons dry red wine
1 tablespoon chopped fresh sage or 1 teaspoon dried rubbed sage
1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary or 1 teaspoon dried
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 3-pound boneless pork loin
6 bay leaves
1 1/2 cups (or more) chicken stock or canned low-salt broth
2 fennel bulbs, tops trimmed, bulbs cut into thin wedges
Lemon wedges

Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Blend first 8 ingredients in processor until mixture is finely chopped.

    Step 2

    Using tip of small sharp knife, make about twenty 1 1/2-inch-deep incisions all over pork loin. Press 1 generous teaspoonful of pancetta paste into each incision. Rub remaining paste over outside of pork. Arrange bay leaves in bottom of roasting pan. Place pork loin atop bay leaves. Cover; let pork stand at room temperature 2 hours or refrigerate overnight.

    Step 3

    Preheat oven to 375°F. Sprinkle pork with salt. Roast 45 minutes. Pour 1 1/2 cups stock into pan. Continue to roast until thermometer inserted into center registers 155°F, adding more stock if it evaporates and basting pork with juices occasionally, about 45 minutes longer.

    Step 4

    Transfer pork to cutting board. Discard bay leaves. Transfer pan juices to small saucepan. Skim fat from top of juices; boil until liquid is reduced by half, about 4 minutes. Cut pork into 1/2-inch-thick slices. Transfer to platter. Pour juices over. Surround with fennel and lemon wedges (squeeze lemon over fennel at table).

TagsPork LoinPorkMeatFennelRoot VegetableVegetableMainDinnerDairy FreeGluten FreeNut FreeRoastFood ProcessorBon Appétit
Read More
Smashed Pork Tacos
Instead of searing one tortilla at a time, you'll cook eight at once under the broiler.
Sofrito Bolognese
An ex-boyfriend’s mom—who emigrated from Colombia—made the best meat sauce—she would fry sofrito for the base and simply add cooked ground beef, sazón, and jarred tomato sauce. My version is a bit more bougie—it calls for caramelized tomato paste and white wine—but the result is just as good.
Smothered Italian Sausage
This is what I call a fridge-eater recipe. The key here is getting a nice sear on the sausage and cooking the tomato down until it coats the sausage and vegetables well.
Spicy Carrot Rigatoni
Hailee Catalano transforms humble carrots into a beautifully creamy pasta sauce.
Crispy Baked Wings With Berbere Honey Glaze and Fried Garlic
Berbere is a spicy chile blend that has floral and sweet notes from coriander and cardamom, and when it’s paired with a honey glaze, it sets these wings apart from anything else you’ve ever had.
Maple Bacon Cabbage Wedges
Roasted cabbage wedges get cloaked in a salty-sweet glaze of maple syrup and Dijon mustard before getting topped with crunchy bacon.
Frijoles Peruanos (Peruvian Refried Beans)
Mayocobas, or canary beans, are the quick-cooking pantry ingredient you should know about.
Lemony Cauliflower Chicken and Rice Soup
This grandma-inspired soup is equal parts cozy and bright.