Pork Potato and Cider Casserole

I know the Sydney Autumn is lovely and the temperatures are still in the high 20’s, but you might notice I love hearty food, which comes from being brought up in the North of England , so I love to eat stews and casseroles all year round, I just close the doors and turn up the aircon. So today I popped up to my local butcher Darling Street Meats in Rozelle to gaze in their amazing cabinets to find something yummy to casserole.  Chris the butcher suggested some pork neck, which was perfect for this dish.  Its relatively easy to make and the results are stunning.  You could leave out the potatoes and serve with crusty bread, or go the whole hog with double carbohydrate LOL which we did ! Anyway I hope you enjoy this dish as much as we did !! Happy Cooking

Serves 6

Prep Time 40 mins

Cooking Time 2 hrs

Total Hours 2 hrs 40 mins

• 1kg pork neck
• 200g chunky streaky bacon, chopped
• 2tbs olive oil
• 16 baby onions, peeled and left whole
• 10 baby new potatoes cut in half
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 2 celery sticks, chopped
• 300ml dry cider
• 300ml chicken stock
• 6tbsp crème fraîche
• 2tbsp cornflour mixed with 2tbsp water
• 2tbsp Dijon mustard
• 2tbsp fresh tarragon leaves, finely chopped

 

you will need:

• large, flameproof casserole dish

• Heat the oven to 170 C, 150 C fan, 325 F, gas 3. Heat half the oil in the casserole dish, add half the pork, season and fry for about 10 minutes until thoroughly browned. Remove the meat from the casserole with a slotted spoon and reserve. Add the rest of the oil to the casserole and fry the rest of the pork for 10 minutes until evenly browned.
• Meanwhile, in another pan, dry-fry the lardons until crispy. Remove, set aside, then fry the baby onions, onion and celery for a few minutes, to soften slightly.
• Combine all the pork, the lardons, baby, onion and celery in the casserole. Pour over the cider and chicken stock to cover. Cover the dish and cook in the oven for 1 hours and add the baby new potatoes and put back in the oven for a further hour until the pork is tender
• Add the crème fraîche, cornflour mix, mustard and tarragon to the casserole. Heat on the hob and stir until the sauce has thickened slightly.