This is such a great recipe for the all family; lots of flavour, easy ingredients, inexpensive and everything is roasted together in one pan - less washing up!
Pork shoulder steaks are nicely marbled with fat which flavours the meat well but melts away when roasted at a high temperature. The secret to getting the potatoes crisp and keeping the pork succulent is to roast the potatoes at a very high temperature for 35 minutes, then add the pork for 15 minutes and once the pork is done, take it out (leave it to rest) and roast off the potatoes for another 10 minutes.
Miraculous ingredients: Maris piper potatoes, fresh rosemary, pork shoulder steaks (free range or organic), Santini baby plum tomatoes (M&S sells this variety), sweet paprika
Pork shoulder steaks with paprika, roasted with potatoes, onions, garlic and rosemary
Ingredients 6 large potatoes (Maris piper works well in this dish) 5 large garlic cloves, peeled and left whole 2 medium brown onions, peeled and quartered 5 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil 3 fresh sprigs of rosemary 4 pork shoulder steaks at least 2cms thick (organic or free range) 100g Santini baby plum tomatoes 1 tablespoon sweet paprika Coarse sea salt
Method Preheat the oven to 240C (electric fan).
Peel the potatoes and then cut them lengthwise into 1/8ths to create thin wedges. Put the potatoes, onion quarters, whole garlic cloves and whole baby plum tomatoes into a roasting pan and scatter with rosemary leaves and sea salt. Pour over the olive oil and mix well so all the ingredients are coated.
Place the pan into the oven and roast for 35 minutes.
Pull out the roasting pan and turn the potatoes, onion, garlic and baby plum tomatoes with a metal spatula to brown the underside. Smear the pork shoulder steaks with olive oil, sprinkle on the paprika and sea salt, and rub with your fingers so the meat is well covered. Place the pork top of the roast potatoes. The pork will take about 15 minutes to roast, however I usually check the pork after 10 minutes to see it it's almost done - the thickness of pork steaks varies so much that sometimes when I cook this dish the pork has cooked much quicker.
Take the pan out for a second time and cut into one of the pork steaks to see if it’s cooked through. If they’re done, remove the pork, place on a warm plate and cover with foil. Turn the potatoes, onion, tomatoes and garlic a few times and put the pan back in the oven for another 10 minutes. This last bit of roasting will make the potatoes extra crispy.
Preparation time 15 minutes, cooking 1 hour, serves 4
I love to eat the pork and potatoes with a raw fennel salad - it's in season now and tastes so good with a few squeezes of lemon and a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil - my 4 year old devours this salad!
