Crispy pork rack with sticky bourbon apples
- 2.2kg (4½-pound) rack of pork, rind on
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 tablespoon coarse cooking (kosher) salt
- ½ cup (110g) firmly packed light brown sugar
- ½ cup (125ml) bourbon
- 4 medium pink lady apples (600g), quartered
- 4 medium red onions (680g), root ends intact, cut into eighths
1. Preheat oven to 250°C/500°F.
2. Pat pork rind dry with paper towel. Using a very sharp knife or Stanley knife, score the rind at 1cm (½-inch) intervals, cutting into the fat but not deep enough to cut through to the flesh. Place pork on a wire rack in a large baking dish. Rub rind with oil, then rub in salt.
3. Roast pork for 40 minutes or until skin blisters. (Your oven will smoke, but don’t worry – you need this strong heat for really great crackling; the rind will not blister after this stage.)
4. Reduce oven to 180°C/350°F; roast pork for a further 40 minutes or until pork is just cooked through.
5. Meanwhile, combine sugar and bourbon in a medium baking dish. Add apple and onion; stir to coat. Roast in oven for the last 25 minutes of pork cooking time.
6. Serve pork with sticky apple mixture.
Serving suggestion: Serve with steamed asparagus and zucchini topped with chopped, roasted unsalted pistachios.
