I really like this recipe. I have never been a huge fan of fennel but it really makes it in this dish. I cooked my meat a little bit longer then what she called for and it was still very tender and moist. Excellent vegetables too! Roast Loin of Pork with Fennel Copyright 2001, Barefoot Contessa Parties!, All rights reserved This recipe is available for a limited time only. Why? Recipe Summary Prep Time: 20 minutes Cook Time: 40 minutes Inactive Prep Time: 45 minutes Yield: 6 servings 2 cloves garlic, minced Salt and freshly ground black pepper, plus 1 tablespoon kosher salt 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves 1/4 cup Dijon mustard 1 (3-pound) boneless pork loin, trimmed and tied 3 small fennel bulbs, tops removed 8 carrots, peeled, and thickly sliced diagonally 10 small potatoes (red or white-skinned), cut in quarters 2 yellow onions, thickly sliced 4 tablespoons good olive oil 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. With a mortar and pestle, or in a food processor fitted with a steel blade, grind together the garlic, 1 tablespoon salt, and thyme leaves. Add the mustard. Spread the mixture over the loin of pork and allow it to sit at room temperature for at least 30 minutes. Meanwhile, cut the fennel bulbs in thick wedges, cutting through the core. Toss the fennel, carrots, potatoes, and onions in a bowl with the olive oil, melted butter, salt, and pepper to taste. Place the vegetables in a large roasting pan and cook for 30 minutes. Add the pork loin to the pan and continue to cook for another 30 minutes, or until a meat thermometer inserted into the middle of the pork reads exactly 138 degrees. Remove the meat from the pan and return the vegetables to the oven to keep cooking. Cover the meat with aluminum foil and allow it to rest for 15 minutes. Remove the strings from the meat and slice it thickly. Arrange the meat and vegetables on a platter. Sprinkle with salt and freshly ground pepper to taste. Serve warm.

teresa_nc7, I posted this recipe in New Recipes - August 2012 thread. If you want to read the original recipes, the links are on that thread. Yes, it is a bit tedious to toast and grind rice, but it can be done way in advance, as can juicing the limes. After reading about fish sauce on the Cook's Thesaurus, I substituted low sodium soy sauce with a squirt of anchovy paste in it. It was not difficult to make. I was pleasantly surprised at how easy it was to grind pork in my food processor. Thai Pork Lettuce Wraps from Cooks Illustrated. Yield: 6 appetizers or 4 main courses INGREDIENTS 1 pork tenderloin (about 1 pound), trimmed of silver skin and fat, cut into 1-inch chunks 2 1/2 Tbsp. fish sauce 1 Tbsp. white rice 1/4 cup low-sodium chicken broth 2 medium shallots , peeled and sliced into thin rings (about 1/2 cup) 3 Tbsp. juice from 2 limes 2 tsp. sugar 1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes 3 tablespoons chopped mint leaves 3 Tbsp. chopped cilantro leaves 1 head Bibb lettuce , washed and dried, leaves separated and left whole DIRECTIONS 1. Place pork chunks on large plate in single layer. Freeze meat until firm and starting to harden around edges but still pliable, 15 to 20 minutes. 2. Place half of meat in food processor and pulse until coarsely chopped, 5 to six 1-second pulses. Transfer ground meat to medium bowl and repeat with remaining chunks. Stir 1 tablespoon fish sauce into ground meat and marinate, refrigerated, 15 minutes. 3. Heat rice in small skillet over medium-high heat; cook, stirring constantly, until deep golden brown, about 5 minutes. Transfer to small bowl and cool 5 minutes. Grind rice with spice grinder, mini food processor, or mortar and pestle until it resembles fine meal, 10 to 30 seconds (you should have about 1 tablespoon rice powder). 4. Bring broth to simmer in 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add pork and cook, stirring frequently, until about half of pork is no longer pink, about 2 minutes. Sprinkle 1 teaspoon rice powder over pork; continue to cook, stirring constantly, until remaining pork is no longer pink, 1 to 1 1/2 minutes longer. Transfer pork to large bowl; let cool 10 minutes. 5. Add remaining 1 1/2 tablespoons fish sauce, remaining 2 teaspoons rice powder, shallots, lime juice, sugar, red pepper flakes, mint, and cilantro to pork; toss to combine. Serve with lettuce leaves. I added a a peanut sauce from Chow Mix together (I used my immersion blender): 3/4 cup natural-style creamy peanut butter (used crunchy as directed by my Vietnamese friend) 1/3 cup water 3 tablespoons hoisin sauce 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice (from about 1 1/2 medium limes) 4 1/2 teaspoons soy sauce 1 tablespoon granulated sugar (omitted) 2 1/4 teaspoons chile-garlic paste 1 medium garlic clove, mashed to a paste 1/2 teaspoon toasted sesame oil Here is a link that might be useful: New Recipes Review - August 2012

I use a basic method for getting the ribs tender before placing them on the grill for their final hurrah... Place ribs (don't separate them yet unless they're the big country ribs)in a single layer on a jelly roll pan (cookie sheet with sides, and sprinkle with salt and pepper...you can give them a light rub of your favorite dry run here, but it's not necessary). Cover them tightly with foil, poking a couple of holes so some steam can excape - and put in a 300-325° oven for 2 - 3 hours. Carefully move the cooking sheet to a cooling surface (there may be a lot of liquid in the pan), and VERY carefully remove the foil (avoid those steam burns). Let the meat sit for 30 minutes (it will fall off the bone if you move it while it's this hot). You can prepare up to this point and finish up later on the grill. Get a grill nice and hot, then move the ribs to the grill and heat. Last 5 minutes, put on your favorite BBQ sauce (I like Bullseye) or marinade, and finish them off. Sue

Okay here it comes...with a qualifier. The pork loin roast(actually two that had been bound together) was double freezer bagged in the downstairs freezer since last year's holiday time. I had forgotten all about it and when I unearthed it and there wasn't a bit of freezer burn so I thought I could still use it. Now maybe it did suffer, or maybe not, but the texture wasn't right and the meat was dry, even with the middle a slight pink. It took every bit of an hour and 40 minutes to get up to 140. I let it rest, but cripes it was nearly 8 pm! My parents ate it and I tried to, but DH just refused after his second bite and grabbed some salami and cheese! The compote was good, not garlicky, and the addition of some honey crisp apple slices was great! I'd make the compote again, but I'm sticking with pork tenderloin or Diana's brined chop recipe, they were both much better! One last thing, I don't have fresh herbs on hand so I used my Penzy's dried ones. That could have made a flavor difference, but for $1.89 a package that would have been close to $8 in fresh herbs for a few sprigs. Oh well, it's a good thing that my parents were the "company" tonight. The remainder of the pork is in the trash can and the kitchen is closed!