A few weeks back, we had purchased a prepared pork tenderloin that had a garlic and herb rub, and it turned out great. But, for the upcharge of being prepared for us, it really wasn’t worth the extra money — plus, we don’t know what exactly it is they used. So we poked around the interwebs, for something similar, and ended up settling on trying out a garlicky pork roast from her Better Homes & Garden book. It turned out great!
Roasted pork with fennel
- 3lb pork loin roast
- 12 cloves of garlic, minced
- 3 Tbs fresh thyme (or 1 Tbs dried thyme)
- 1 lb baby potatoes, quartered
- 4 medium carrots, quartered
- 2 fennel bulbs, trimmed and wedged; reserve & chop about 1 Tbs of fronds
- 3 Tbs olive oil
- 1 1/2 tsp of kosher salt
- 1/2 tsp of freshly ground black pepper
- 1/2 c apple juice (and I highly recommend Simply Apple for this)
Preheat oven to 425F. Rub the roast with 1/2 tsp salt, 1/4 tsp pepper, 2 Tbs of thyme, and fennel fronds. Place in roasting pan. Combine the carrots, potatoes, fennel, oil and the remaining salt and pepper. Arrange vegetables around the meat in a single layer. (Optional: Add a little extra apple juice at the bottom of the pan.) Roast uncovered until the meat thermometer registers 125F. Flip the roast so the bottom is up and continue roasting until the thermometer registers 155F, so it’s beautifully browned on both sides. Remove the meat, and tent with foil for about 10 minutes (the temperature should reach 160F.) Remove the vegetables from the pan, and stir in the apple juice. Cook on the stove, scraping up any browned bits, and reduce. Return vegetables to the pan and toss.