SPICE-RUBBED PORK RACK WITH WHISKEY-CHERRY SAUCE & WILD RICE PILAF

SPICE-RUBBED PORK RACK WITH WHISKEY-CHERRY SAUCE & WILD RICE PILAF image

Categories Pork

Yield 6

Number Of Ingredients 32

Ingredients

PORK ROAST INGREDIENTS:
1 full rack or standing rib roast of pork (about 2 ½ lbs.)
2 cloves garlic sliced thin
½ tablespoon fennel seed
1 Tb. Fresh thyme
1 Tb. Rosemary
10 sage leaves
2 Tb. Sea salt
1 Tb. Coarse ground black pepper
2 Tb. Extra-virgin olive oil
CHERRY-WHISKEY SAUCE INGREDIENTS:
½ cup dried sour cherries
½ tsp. kosher salt
1tsp. chipotle chili powder
½ cup red wine vinegar
½ cup maple syrup
2 tbsp. Dijon mustard
½ cup water
4 tbsp.bourbon whiskey
WILD RICE PILAF INGREDIENTS
1 c wild rice
3 c chicken broth
¼ large red onion, diced small
1 bay leaf
1 c quinoa
½ c toasted pecans, chopped
½ c dried sour cherries
½ c boiling water
2T bourbon whiskey
2 green onions, chopped fine
1tsp kosher salt
¼ tsp fresh-ground black pepper

Steps:

Cover the pork with brine in a large container and let it marinate in the fridge for 45 minutes (optional). Pat dry with paper towel. Place the garlic, fennel seeds, herbs, salt and pepper on a cutting board and mix it all together. With a large chef's knife, roughly cop everything together. Pour the olive oil directly on the cutting board over the herb mixture and use the end of your knife to smear it together and form a paste. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees and rub the pork with the spice mixture on all sides. Roast in the oven in a roasting rack in the middle of the oven for about 45 minutes until internal temp reads 125 degrees. Remove from the oven and allow to rest for 15 minutes before slicing. CHERRY-WHISKEY SAUCE DIRECTIONS In a small pot, combine cherries, salt, chipotle powder, vinegar, maple, mustard, water and bring to a simmer over medium-high heat. Continue to simmer for 3 minutes; then remove from heat. Add whiskey. Can be made a day ahead and refrigerated until ready to use. WILD RICE PILAF DIRECTIONS Combine the wild rice, 1½ cups of the broth, red onion, and bay leaf in a large pot, and bring to a simmer over medium-high heat. Cover the pot and turn the heat to low. Cook the rice-broth mix for about 20 minutes, until the rice soaks up all the liquid, Pull the pot off the heat and let it sit, tightly covered, for 5 minutes. While the rice is cooking, combine the quinoa with the remaining 1½ cups broth in a small pot, and cook it in the same way you cooked the rice: Bring it to a boil, cover, reduce the heat to low, and let it sit. The quinoa will cook faster: it only needs about 10 minutes to soak up all the broth. Put cherries in a bowl and pour the boiling water over them. Add the whiskey and let the mixture steep for 20 minutes until the cherries plump. When the rice is ready, pull the bay leaf out and discard. Add cherries and half their liquid to the rice, add remaining ingredients.