Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Sharp carving knife
• •Kitchen string
• •Heavy roasting pan or oven-safe skillet
• •Meat thermometer
• •Fine sieve for the gravy

Instructions

1. 1

   Prepare the fruit

   Peel and core the apples and cut them into thick slices, about half a centimetre each. Thick matters here. Thin slices dissolve during the long roast and you lose the texture entirely. You want pieces that hold their shape and give a slight resistance when you bite through the finished slice. Set the apple slices and the prunes aside together. That's your filling.

2. 2

   Butterfly the pork

   Lay the pork loin on a board with the fat side down. Hold your knife parallel to the board and cut horizontally into the thickest part of the loin, slicing about two thirds of the way through. Stop a centimetre before you cut all the way. Open it like a book. If the loin is very thick, you can make a second shallow cut on the thicker side and fold that flap out too. What you want is a flat, roughly even piece of meat large enough to hold the stuffing and roll around it. Don't worry about perfection. Once it's rolled and tied, nobody sees the inside architecture.

   If butterflying feels unfamiliar, ask your butcher to do it. Tell them you want the loin opened flat for stuffing and rolling. Any good butcher will know exactly what you mean.
3. 3

   Season and stuff

   Season the opened surface of the pork with the salt, pepper, and allspice. Rub it in with your hands. The allspice is important: it's the quiet spice that connects pork and fruit in Danish cooking, warm and aromatic without being sweet. Now lay the prunes in a line down the centre of the meat. Arrange the apple slices alongside and between the prunes, filling the surface but leaving a two-centimetre border at the edges. The border keeps the stuffing from escaping when you roll.

4. 4

   Roll and tie

   Starting from the long edge nearest you, roll the pork up tightly around the filling. Keep the tension steady and even. Don't squeeze, just guide. Tie the roll with kitchen string at three-centimetre intervals, pulling each knot firm enough to hold the shape but not so tight that you cut into the meat. Tie one final piece lengthwise to hold the ends closed. Season the outside with a generous pinch of salt.

   A tight roll is the difference between clean slices and a filling that falls out on the board. Take your time with the tying. It pays for itself later.
5. 5

   Brown the roast

   Heat the oven to 180°C. Melt the butter with the oil in a heavy pan over medium-high heat. When the butter foams and begins to quiet down, lay the rolled pork in seam-side down. Brown it slowly on all sides, turning every couple of minutes, until the entire surface is deep golden. This takes eight to ten minutes and it is not optional. The browning builds flavour on the surface of the meat and creates the fond, the dark, caramelised residue on the bottom of the pan, that becomes the foundation of your gravy.

6. 6

   Roast in the oven

   Transfer the browned roast to a roasting pan, or use the same pan if it's oven-safe. Scatter the onion quarters, chopped carrot, and bay leaves around the meat. Pour in half the stock. The vegetables and liquid serve two purposes: they prevent the drippings from burning on the bottom of the pan, and they build the aromatic base of the gravy as they cook down. Place the pan in the oven and roast for fifty-five to sixty-five minutes. Baste the roast with the pan juices every twenty minutes or so. The pork is done when a thermometer pushed into the thickest part reads 65°C. The meat will carry over to about 68°C while it rests, which gives you pork that is cooked through but still tender and faintly pink at the centre.

   If you don't have a meat thermometer, press the roast firmly with your finger. It should feel like the base of your thumb when you press your thumb and ring finger together: firm but with give. If it feels hard, it's overcooked.
7. 7

   Rest the meat

   Lift the roast onto a board and cover it loosely with a sheet of foil. Let it rest for fifteen minutes. This is not a suggestion. If you cut too soon, the juices run out onto the board and the meat goes dry. Resting lets everything redistribute, so when you finally slice, the juices stay where they belong: in the pork.

8. 8

   Make the gravy

   Set the roasting pan on the stovetop over medium heat. Pour in the remaining stock and use a wooden spoon to scrape up every bit of fond from the bottom. Let it simmer for a couple of minutes. In a small cup, mix the flour and cold water to a smooth paste, then stir it into the pan. Keep stirring as the gravy thickens, about three minutes. Add the cream, stir it through, and let the gravy simmer for another minute. Taste it. Adjust the salt. Strain everything through a fine sieve into a warm jug, pressing the softened vegetables with the back of a spoon to extract their flavour. Discard what's left in the sieve. The gravy should be smooth, glossy, and savoury, with a depth that comes from the roast itself.

9. 9

   Slice and serve

   Remove the string from the rested roast. Use a sharp knife to cut thick slices, about two centimetres each. Go slowly. You want to see the cross-section: the golden crust, the pale pork, the dark prunes and the soft apple nestled at the centre. Arrange the slices on a warm serving plate and spoon a little gravy over the top. Serve the rest of the gravy alongside. This is the kind of dish that earns a tak for mad.

Chef Tips

• •Use good prunes. The soft, plump kind sold loose at a good grocer, not the dry compressed blocks. The prunes carry sweetness into the pork, and cheap prunes taste of nothing but sugar.
• •Ask your butcher for a loin with the fat cap still on. Score the fat in a crosshatch pattern before you season. The fat renders during roasting and bastes the meat from the outside. If your loin comes without a fat cap, the dish still works, but baste more often.
• •Serve this with rødkål (braised red cabbage with vinegar and redcurrant jelly) and brunede kartofler (caramelised potatoes). Those three together are a complete Danish Sunday dinner, and each one makes the others taste better. The sweet-sour cabbage cuts the richness of the pork, and the caramelised potatoes are the quiet luxury that ties the plate together.
• •A glass of cold Danish beer or a light red wine works here. Nothing heavy. The dish already has depth, and the drink should refresh, not compete.

Advance Preparation

• •The roast can be stuffed, rolled, and tied up to a day in advance. Wrap it tightly and keep it in the fridge. Bring it to room temperature for an hour before browning, so it cooks evenly.
• •Forloren and reheats well. Slice it cold, then warm the slices gently in the leftover gravy over low heat. The flavours deepen overnight, and some Danish cooks will tell you it's better on the second day.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 310g)