Tom’s Kitchen’s pork loin with roast apples and cider

Method

• step 1

  Heat the oven to 180C/fan 160c/gas 4. Heat a large ovenproof casserole or pan on a medium heat and add the oil. Season the pork then sear quickly on all sides. Turn the heat down and keep cooking the pork fat-side down so that it starts to render down and go crisp (about 10-15 minutes). Roughly chop 2 of the onions and put around the pork with 2 sprigs of rosemary. Transfer the dish to the oven for 40 minutes (stirring the onions occasionally).

• step 2

  Cut 5 apples into quarters, core and peel (keep the trimmings for later). put the apple segments in a small ovenproof pan and add 25g butter. Fry until golden on all sides. Add half the sugar, cook until caramelised, then put in the oven for the last 10 minutes of the pork’s cooking time.

• step 3

  Finely slice the remaining onion and put in a pan with 15g butter and the thyme. season and cook for 10-15 minutes until caramelised to a dark golden brown.

• step 4

  Peel and core the rest of the apples, then roughly chop them along with the peeled trimmings from the other apples. heat a pan with 20g butter. add the chopped apple and peel, the rest of the sugar and a sprig of rosemary. Cover, and sweat for 5-10 minutes then add the lemon juice. Reduce the apple until thick, discard the rosemary, then blend to a purée and pass through a fine sieve.

• step 5

  Take the pork out to rest. pour the cider into the casserole and boil to reduce by ⅔. Add the stock and reduce again by half. Sieve and add 1 tbsp apple purée to thicken the sauce.

• step 6

  Heat the caramelised onion and the rest of the apple purée separately. Slice the pork into 4 cutlets, pour the sauce over and serve with the roast apples, the onions and the apple purée.