Leg of pork - oven roast or slow cook?

keyser666

nmlc wrote: »

Hi

I would cook as per instructions but definitely check after the first hour - I do agree with you about the temp being rather high - I assume you're not cooking the joint from frozen? It's either defrosted or fresh? If the juices run clear the meat will be cooked if not it will need cooking for longer. I never cook meat on that higher temp for that long - only ever start the turkey at xmas off at 200c for half hour then turn temp down for the remaining cooking time. HTH if I'm not too late to help.

nmlc x

Thanks nmlc, I can only think it is that high because of the crackling, seems extremely high for a 1kg joint though.

Normally to get the crackling it is high for 20-30 mins and then down for an hour or so.

Fag_ash_lil

Blimey number 9 does seem high ...

I hope you are going to treat us to a picture of it when its cooked so we can all drool over it ..

terri x

viv0147

Roast Leg of Pork I am looking for advice on the best way to cook this in the oven I haven’t got a slow cooker now my problem is I wear dentures so I really want my meat to be tender and that includes Beef and Lamb from what I can gather it should be cooked on a low heat and for quite a long time but at the moment it pretty hit and miss so I really need to call on your expertise please help. Thanks

Honey_Bear

Gosh Viv, you seem to be waiting a long time for a suggestion. I'm not a brilliant cook, but long slow cooking seems to be the answer to making meat so tender you can cut it with a spoon, but you wouldn't want it to dry out. May I suggest braising it? Put a bed of large chunked root veggies in a roasting dish, putting water in to a depth that almost covers them but leaves the tips poking above, like icebergs, and then putting the meat on top of them. If you have a bit of sage or thyme, that would be good scattered in the bed of veg, too. If you have a drop of wine or stock, some of that in the water would be good aswell, but the herbs and flavoured stock are not vital to the texture, they just add to the gravy's flavour. (The gravy will be very thin, so you might want to thicken it after everything's finished cooking.)

It is vital that the braising tin has a lid because what you're actually doing is almost steaming the meat, very gently.

Bung it in the oven at 130 or so for three hours, set the timer and walk away from it. After three hours or so, take it out, prod the meat and see if it's tender enough for you. If not, shove it back in and leave it for at least another hour making sure there is still enough water around the now flattened veg - the more you test it, the longer it will take, obviously. (Nigella has a recipe for lamb that involves cooking it for 12 hours!)

At least, that's what I do with meat that I think is going to be tough.

You may also want to try googling braising meat and see what other answers you can find.

Good luck with it.

viv0147

Thank you Honeybear I was beginning to think I had used invisible ink lol

bluebag

I cook it long and slow in the oven, no crackling. I don't have dentures but my teeffe are rubbish, so similar issues. Scrambled egg gets so boring!

Overnight marinades that include vinegar work well at tenderizing prior to long slow cooking.

You could maybe ask Santa for a slow cooker, it makes meat buttersoft.

maman

This Jamie Oliver recipe

http://www.jamieoliver.com/recipes/pork-recipes/6-hour-slow-roasted-pork-shoulder

uses the method that Honey Bear is describing.

It's absolutely yummy. I find that I end up just eating the roast veg, they rarely get as far as the gravy!:rotfl:

Honey_Bear

It's a pleasure, Viv. I knew that if one person posted, others would pop in and post too. Good luck with it, and let us know how it goes, will you?

McKneff

I tend to find that slow cookers make joints of meat stringy,

BitterAndTwisted

I think slow-cookers are fab for cheaper, less tender cuts of meat but with something good like a leg of pork I wouldn't let it anywhere near one as I think it would be a waste.