Yummy pork roast

Roasted Pork Butt with Gravy
Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives Copyright 2008

Marinade:
2 tablespoons light brown sugar
2 teaspoons ground ginger
2 teaspoons garlic powder
2 teaspoons dried mustard
2 teaspoons celery salt
½ cup vegetable oil
¼ cup soy sauce
2 teaspoons cider vinegar
2 teaspoons liquid smoke
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce

Pork Roast:
1 (5 to 6-pound) bone-in Boston butt
Freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons dried rosemary
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1. For the marinade: Mix the sugar, ginger, garlic powder, mustard, and celery salt together in a large nonreactive bowl. Then whisk in the oil, soy, vinegar, liquid smoke, and Worcestershire sauce.
2. For the pork roast: Put the pork in the marinade and turn to coat evenly. Cover and refrigerate for 8 hours or overnight.
3. Position a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees F. Put the pork roast in a roasting pan, season generously with black pepper, and scatter the rosemary over the meat. Roast the pork, uncovered, until the meat starts to fall off the bone, 3 ½ to 4 hours, Transfer the roast to a carving board and let rest for 20 minutes before slicing. (Reserve the roasting pan.)
4. To make the gravy, pour the pan drippings from the roast into a fat separator and discard the excess fat. Melt the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the flour and cook, stirring for 1 minute, to make a paste (or roux). Place the roasting pan over the two burners on medium-high heat. Add 1 ½ cups water to the pan and scrape up any brown bits clinging to the bottom of the pan. Let the liquid come to a simmer, then strain into the saucepan with the roux. Whisk the gravy and bring to a boil; add the reserved pan drippings. Simmer the gravy until thickened and season to taste with salt and pepper.
5. Slice the pork and serve with the gravy.
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When I saw the episode of Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives that this pork roast appeared on (in the DeWese’s Tip Top Cafe segment), the drool was flowing out of my mouth. I was so happy to see that it was one of the recipes that made the book. There aren't a heck of a lot of recipes in this book but so far the two I've tried (this one and Aunt Nancy's Coleslaw) have been stand-outs.

I thought this would be dry after such a long cooking time. I didn't actually have time for the pork to fall off the bone. My roast was just over 4 pounds and I let it go about 3 hours and it was just about to fall off the bone but it wasn't quite there. That was good enough. It was surprisingly tender. I left the fat on top since I didn't want it to dry out and the fat was charred, deliciously charred. I didn't get any juicy drippings though, just fat. They simply evaporated. They were some bits on the bottom of the pan, some a bit browned, which made for the darkest gravy I've ever made without adding some sort of booster like Gravy Master. That dark, rich color you see is all natural.

Question of the Day: Do you have a favorite local restaurant? I have to admit we don't often dine locally. There aren't many options. We have one diner in town but the quality went downhill and I rarely see cars in their lot anymore. We usually only eat out when we're out doing something else. If we're close to home, we eat at home (or McDs). I think I'll make it a point to try visit one of the other local restaurants soon. I feel bad for one that opened just as the economy tanked.