Rolled Pork Roast with Pear, Fennel and Port Wine Sauce

INGREDIENTS

For the filling:

2 small red onions

70 g dates, pitted

100 g chestnuts, pre-cooked

20 g pecan nuts

2 tbsp oil

½ tsp aniseeds

½ tsp fennel seeds

salt, pepper

For the roll roast:

900 g pork fillet, cut flat

approx. 2 tbsp medium-hot mustard

approx. 190 g slices of streaky bacon

some kitchen string

For the vegetables:

3-4 parsnips

2 fennel bulbs

3 pears

2 cinnamon sticks

7-8 sage leaves

2-3 tbsp oil

salt, pepper

For the sauce:

100 ml port wine

½ tsp cornflour (optional)

1 tsp cold butter

salt, pepper

For the filling, peel and finely dice the onions. Roughly chop the dates, chestnuts and roughly chop the pecan nuts.

Heat the oil in a pan and fry the onions for 6-8 minutes until soft. Add the spices and fry for a few more minutes. Switch off the hob, add the remaining ingredients for the filling to the pan and mix together. Season with salt and pepper and set aside.

Line the work surface with a piece of cling film or a sheet of baking paper. Lay the bacon slices next to each other on the cling film or baking paper so that they overlap slightly. Cut the remaining slices in half and lay them against the bacon strips to extend them.

Place the pork fillet on top of the bacon. Make sure that some bacon sticks out on the left and right. Coat the meat evenly with mustard. Spread the filling over the pork and press down so that it sticks to the meat.

Roll up the meat tightly using the foil (or baking paper). Tie together with some kitchen string.

Preheat the oven to 160 °C Circo Therm. Peel the parsnips and halve or quarter depending on their size. Wash the fennel and cut into thin slices. Place the vegetables on a baking tray lined with baking paper and drizzle with a little oil. Season with salt and pepper and mix together. Place the cinnamon sticks and 4-5 sage leaves on the tray.

Bake in the preheated oven for about 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, peel the pears, remove the core and cut into quarters. After about 10 minutes, remove the vegetables from the oven, move them to one side and place the roast on the tray. Place the pears on the tray too.

Cook at 160 °C Circo Therm, ‘medium steam support’, for about 25 minutes until the meat has reached the correct internal temperature (approx. 60 °C). Remove the roll roast from the oven and leave to rest for about 15 minutes.

Skim the gravy from the tray and bring to the boil in a small pan with the port wine and reduce. Thicken with a little cornstarch if desired. Remove the sauce from the heat, add the butter and flavour with salt and pepper. In the meantime, keep the vegetables warm in the oven.

Slice the roll roast and arrange on plates with the pear and fennel vegetables. Drizzle with sauce and serve.