Some people may wonder if I’m bored at home all day. Nope! In case people are wondering what I’m up to, I’m busy with juggling selling Life and Health insurance for New York Life https://www.newyorklife.com/, promoting One Hope Wine https://www.onehopewine.com/myshop/debbie-toro, providing Leadership Trainings (as well as Life Coaching) with Forward Motion International https://fmillc.com/, and cooking delicious meals for Eddie. Then I have to find the time to jot it all down for others to read about.

I do have to say that I was unable to schedule a dinner party for this dish this time around, but I definitely will do so next time. This would make a great dish for a dinner party. The leftovers will be used for Winemaker’s Carnitas Tacos.

Curing the pork shoulder overnight under a blanket of salt, sugar, and spices makes for juicy, flavorful meat. The fennel cooks down into a rich jammy condiment that complements every bite.

What you will need: 1 cup kosher salt; 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar; 1 Tbsp. fennel seeds, toasted and crushed; 1 Tbsp. crushed black peppercorns; 1 Tbsp. crushed red pepper flakes; 1 (8 to 10-lb.) bone-in pork shoulder (Boston Butt) with a thick fat ca0; 6 cups sliced yellow onion; 7 cups sliced fennel.

What to do:

1. Stir together salt, sugar, fennel, black peppercorns, and red pepper in a medium bowl until blended. Using a sharp knife, deeply score fat cap of port in a 3/4 in diamond pattern, cutting through the fat, but not into the meat. Rub pork with salt mixture, avoiding rubbing mixture into scored fat. Place pork on a rimmed baking sheet, scored side up. Loosely cover with plastic wrap and chill 24 hours.
2. Preheat oven to 300 degrees F. Line a roasting pan with aluminum foil. Remove pork from refrigerator, and let stand 30 minutes. Drain any juices from bottom of baking sheet, and pat pork dry. Brush off any excess salt mixture with paper towel. Place pork, fat side up, in a prepared roasting pan. Roast pork, uncovered, in a preheated oven 7 hours and 30 minutes. Scatter onions and fennel around pork, and using tongs, toss in pork drippings. Continue to roast until a paring knife slides through the meat and vegetables are very tender, about 1 hour and 30 minutes. Let pork rest 15 minutes before pulling apart with tongs or 2 forks.

Wine Pairing: One Hope Pinot Noir

You may order the wine here: https://www.onehopewine.com/myshop/debbie-toro