February 27, 2007
Compotée d'Echine de Porc au Cidre
[Cider-Stewed Pork Loin Blade Roast]
I find cuts of meat confusing.
I find them confusing because the terminology straggles from the technical to the vernacular and back again, because readable diagrams are few and far between, and because the matter only gets murkier when you try to juggle French and English terms used in different countries.
Can't we all be friends and agree to cut and name meat in the same fashion? May I suggest the creation of a United Nations Symposium of Butchers that will draw up a comparative report -- with diagrams -- and put an end to my puzzlement?
Case in point: the échine de porc I cooked for a dinner party last Saturday. What I really had a mind to cook was joues de porc -- pork cheeks. Don't ask me why, I just did. I pictured the rosy pinch-me cheeks of the three little pigs (don't you love that there's a spoiler warning on the Wikipedia page?) and figured they had to taste good.
But when I called my butcher on Friday to place an order it was too late for him to get the cheeks by the weekend -- I should have called before noon on Thursday; who plans that far in advance? -- so he had me explain what I wanted to make (a cider-flavored stew), and suggested I fall back on échine, which he'd cut in cubes for me.
As it seems to turn out after a frustrating bit of online and offline research, l'échine is a cut from the back of the animal that includes the neck and the first five ribs, and seems to be called the blade end of the loin in English. It may be sold bone-in (as ribs or chops) or boneless (in cubes or as a roast), and is reasonably marbled with fat, a feature that makes it moist, full-flavored, and stew-friendly. It is also not the most noble of loin cuts, and is hence afforable (check with your butcher, but mine charged 25€ for 2kg, which was enough meat to feed eight).
This was my first time cooking a pork stew of that sort -- I usually just rub roasts with spices and stick them in the oven or braise them -- and I have an inkling it won't be the last. I improvised an effortless recipe, leaving the meat to marinate from morning till night in hard cider with shallots and spices, then dumping the whole thing in a pot to simmer for two hours -- I didn't even sear the meat first -- and adding apples halfway through.
The meat took kindly to that treatment, softening to a flavorful pulp (not chewy, not spongy) and gradually turning the marinade into a slick sauce that was a beautiful complement to the pasta gratin I served it with -- recipe coming up next.
Compotée d'Echine de Porc au Cidre
- 2kg (4.5 pounds) boneless pork loin blade roast (échine de porc désossée), cut into 8-cm (3-inch) cubes
- 12 shallots, peeled and halved
- 2 cloves garlic, peeled and halved
- 6 cloves
- 1 stick cinnamon
- 1 bay leaf
- 3 pods cardamom
- 75cl (3 cups) hard cider (cidre brut)
- Fine sea salt
- 2 baking apples
- Freshly ground pepper
Serves 6 to 8.
Start the marinade 10 to 12 hours before the time of serving. Put the meat, shallots, garlic, cloves, cinnamon, and bay leaf in a large salad bowl. Split the pods of cardamom open and add the seeds to the bowl (discard the pods). Pour in the cider and stir with a wooden spoon so the pieces of meat swim comfortably in the marinade. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 8 to 10 hours (or until 2 hours before the time of serving), stirring once or twice during that time.
Set a large pot or, preferably, cast-iron cocotte over medium-low heat. Pour in the contents of the bowl, bring to a simmer, cover, and cook for 1 hour and 15 minutes, stirring every now and then.
Core the apples and cut them into slices (you don't have to peel them). Remove the lid from the pot, season with salt, add the apples, and stir. Keep to a low simmer for another 30 to 45 minutes, uncovered, until the sauce is reduced enough to cling to the meat, stirring regularly -- to prevent the meat and shallots from sticking to the bottom -- but gently -- so as not to mush the now-soft pieces of meat.
Taste the sauce, adjust the seasoning, sprinkle with freshly ground pepper, and serve with steamed potatoes, rice, or a pasta gratin.
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Comments (25)
Permalink | Posted by clotilde in Main Dishes - Recipe Inside!
Oh that just sounds like heaven... and I'm trying to get off of pork too (not good for my heart... unlike chocolate of course!)
Fortunately you went and put three pods of cardamom in and I could feel my mouth revolt!!! I have memories of my mum using cardamom and me chewing on a whole pod in growing disgust... bleh, ick, phooey... as the philosopher has it!
Of course... I could always try it without the cardamom... who wants a heart anyway?!
Posted by Griffin on February 27, 2007 12:48 PMQue ce doit être parfumé et fondant! :-)
Posted by Elvira on February 27, 2007 1:01 PMHi Clotilde,
I like your pork recipe, at first I was surprised that you marinated the meat for so long in the acidic apple cider. I'm sure it made it very tender, I might now try something like that one of these days. What a great comfort food.
I love the addition of cardomon and cinnamon. Yummy!
All the best,
Posted by Monika Korngut on February 27, 2007 2:21 PMMonika Korngut
Hey Clotilde! I was hoping you might have another simmering meat dish coming up soon... I'm so happy to see this recipe! Every week I seem to be repeating the same roast recipes these days, and I wanted to try something new, but for some reason I couldn't come up with anything. Although I did make a filet mignon de porc en croute last weekend, and it turned out pretty well...
This recipe is right up my alley: effortless, like you said, with some nice herbs and spices, and you can let it simmer while you get a lot of other things done -- or as the case may be, while you enjoy your afternoon relaxing...
Thanks -- you've done it again, as usual! :)
Posted by Alice on February 27, 2007 3:51 PMHi Clotilde,
This looks amazing (as usual). Here's a nifty resource for the pork cuts (US), here.
Posted by Dave on February 27, 2007 4:05 PMLooks wonderfull recipe. I have never tried yet any long cooking recipes using some cider. Maybe you could add some calvados during the cooking. I always add some cognac in the Boeug Bourguignon
I see you really love "plat mijotés" ;-)
Posted by Laurent on February 27, 2007 5:14 PMHello,
I love your writing. It's nice to see someone who is as fanatical about food as I am but actually commit it to word for others to enjoy as well.
I am coming to Paris in a few weeks and was wondering could you recommend a good restaurant guide in English?
Cheers,
Posted by Taraja Anderson on February 27, 2007 6:41 PMTJ
Hi I've been looking around recently for a good pasta gratin recipe. Would you mind sharing yours?
Posted by Marguerite on February 27, 2007 10:16 PMI wish I had a quality butcher who could help with all of these explanations. Thanks for the post!
Posted by Susan from Food "Blogga" on February 28, 2007 4:45 AMmany of us non-professional cooks have the same confusion as you regarding cuts of meat. i've found that even regional differences in names can confound a shopping trip.
Posted by bothenook on February 28, 2007 3:48 PMyour recipes show a true ease and skill in the kitchen. some folks paint, some write or perform music. you build culinary masterpieces!
Sounds delicious. What exactly is hard cider. Is it the non fizzy one?
Posted by Jane on February 28, 2007 5:26 PMToo right about confusing cuts of meat - I live in Italy (where names for cuts frequently differ from the north to the south of the country) and my cookbooks are an unhelpful mixture of US and UK. My butcher has quickly tired of me pretending to be a cow and pointing to various parts of my anatomy to request a cut. Does anyone know a good site/wiki for eurozone meat translations? And, while we're at it, fish are tricky too...
Posted by zoë jessica on February 28, 2007 6:01 PMJane - By hard cider I mean the fizzy, lightly alcoholic one that is just called cidre in French.
Zoe - Ah yes, don't even get me started on fish! Fishbase.org helps with the different names, but not with the availability (or lack thereof) at one's local market...
Posted by clotilde on February 28, 2007 6:10 PMYou're right about the confusion surrounding cuts of meat--and the international aspect of blogging just makes it more frustrating. Patricia, in her Brazilian food blog Technicolor Kitchen, recently had a post using a cut of beef called tail of round. Try as I may, I couldn't find an equivalent name here in the U.S. Thankfully, her husband suggested using striploin instead. There's a link to Patricia's excellent blog on mine.
Posted by Terry B on March 1, 2007 12:19 AMThis recipe sounds fantastic! I think I'll try it as soon as I get back home!
Just a note for the translation of 'cidre brut', what do you think about dry cider? (At least, the British version o dry cider is close-ish to the French cidre brut with only a higher alcohol content).
Posted by Estelle on March 1, 2007 4:31 AMClotilde, this sounds like a fantastic candidate for my crockpot! Thanks - I'm always looking for flavourful stews to make with it as most of the ones I've found online are pretty bland!
Posted by Meg on March 1, 2007 10:48 AMDon't get me started on confusing cuts of meat... Just when I started learning the different cuts and what I liked in Brazil, I moved to Canada and had NO idea what was what...
Anyways, we discovered porc cheecks here in Spain. In Catalunya they are called galtes and in Spanish galtas. You are right, they are VERY good...
Posted by Alexandra on March 1, 2007 11:00 PMMon Dieu! In a perfect world: universal terms for all cuts of meats and types of fish AND shoe sizes!
Posted by Marcia on March 1, 2007 11:51 PMJulia Child's Mastering The Art of French Cooking has useful equivalents of French/American cuts of meat. Marketing terms are always evolving, so some of the explanations may be outdated, but it's still a good reference.
Posted by DKH on March 2, 2007 6:11 PMAnother great resource for meat-cut names on both sides of the atlantic is the Field Guide to Meat by Aliza Green. Cuts are listed by their most-common (that is, common in America) name, with cross references to International and regional terms.
Of course, butchers do cut along different lines in each country, and even regionally, but it's better than nothing.
Posted by Anita @ Married with Dinner on March 5, 2007 3:02 AMGreat recipe. I found the link to the cuts diagram really useful.
In the UK, 'couture' butchery is a growing trend...
The more digestible info that gets out there, the better in cuildiong connoisseurship.
Posted by Tim Kitchin on March 5, 2007 4:02 PMI seem to remember that the old version of the Joy of Cooking had equivalent meat charts, too...
Here in France, I'm always at a loss to figure out which cut of meat to use, unless I can easily tell by looking. What is "skirt steak" in French?! And no such thing as "chili grind" beef... or ground chicken. Or hog jowl or ham hocks. And nary a ham bone to flavor a split pea soup. It's awfully tough for a Southerner to live and Paris and cook the foods she loves! (and what I lack most here: liquid chicken or beef stock...just those awful, awful granules)
However, on the matter of split pea soup: I've got some simmering in the crock pot as we speak, but not made with a yummy bone from a Honey-Baked Ham, rather with a little "demi-sel". And, boy, was that tray of "pot-au-feu" veggies handy, too, especially with its handy herb bundle. 500g of "pois cassés", the demi-sel and those veggies (leeks, turnip, carrots, onion) are on the way to making dinner while I type.
As for the bread that will accompany it: from Raoul Maeder (17e...boulange-alsace.com). One of the best bakeries around, and 2 time winner of the "meilleure baguette" designation. Worth a serious detour. Add a little Brittany butter with the seasalt crystals, and you might think seriously about skipping the rest of the meal!
Posted by Poulette on March 6, 2007 2:19 PMI agree, there should be a symposium on meat cuts. This pork dish sounds lovely, I shall try it soon!
Posted by veron on March 7, 2007 7:48 PMFor stewing, in the USA, try pork shoulder, not loin. Loin won't have enough fat and it'll dry out. Should is very high in fat and does well in stews that cook for 45 minutes to an hour after browning.
For an interesting variation, Paula Wolfert's got a pork stew in her mediterranean slow cooking book where you cut it into 3/4" (1.5 cm) dice and brown it up before stewing it with carrots and onions. She adds hot-water soaked prunes near the end of the cooking time and carmelized pearl onions at the end. It disappeared fast.
Posted by Jim on March 21, 2007 4:09 AMI made this pork dish for Easter Saturday dinner, the whole 2 kilos of which was rapidly scoffed down by 6 people (yes, someone even 'licked' the serving bowl with a piece of bread). Mind you, adding to the mystery cut phenomenon, when I ordered the meat the butcher had no idea about the cut of pork I was referring to!? The loin he gave me worked a treat - served with new potatoes cooked in shallots, white wine and sherry vinegar. Same again next Saturday?
Posted by Kreategirl on April 12, 2007 8:25 AM