Chef John's Pork al Latte

Prepared it like the recipe said - even made it with the polenta. (Although I skipped frying the sage leaves.) I liked it with the polenta, my college age son skipped the polenta and just had the meat. My vegetarian hubby just ate the polenta. For once, something for everyone. Before making it, however, I had to research Crème Fraîche. Had no idea what is was. Midwest born and raised, I found out that it is a bit like sour cream but holds up better when cooking. It isn't stocked in my local grocery store, so I made my own by mixing one cup heavy whipping cream with one tablespoon yogurt (per one cooking discussion can also use buttermilk or even lemon juice). I then let it sit unrefrigerated for 24 hours. Since Chef John is a chef, maybe he gets his crème fraîche at a speciality store or supplier, but this worked for me. In researching it, apparently crème fraîche is not sold much in the states because (allegedly) laws requiring pasteurization of dairy products.

I cooked this Pork Al latte today and Polenta. Indeed Chep John is true to his words.It is the most delicious pork stew I have ever cooked and eaten.I could not find fresh sage so I used dried sage from the Spice section of the supermarket here in Japan.I was afraid I would not find it and wondered what herb I could substitute.My family specially my son loved it and asked for the recipe.My husband is not really fond of cream but he had it with content.Thank you so much for this recipe and the most of his recipes that I have tried which are good as well.I have yet to rate them...Neri Kawashima, Kawasaki City, Japan

Absolutely fantastic!!! My first "chef john" recipe. I opted to double ssuce ingredients after reading reviews, glad I did. I was in search of a recipe to use up my pork shoulder that wasn't pulled pork- this was so good! The part that was the most involved was browning the pork as I did it in batches due to size of my Dutch oven. Used creme fraiche (got at trader joes). Served over homemade mashed potatoes. Amazing recipe! THANKS CHEF!

I made this tonight followed the recipe exactly. It was devoured! I did double the recipe because we had a 3 lb. pork roast. Hubby went crazy over it. Fresh sage is a must! I served it over mashed potatoes with a side of mixed vegetables and some crusty bread for sopping up the sauce. It's relatively easy to make, however, I did find I had to cook my pork over 2 hours to get it tender enough, so take that into consideration (I had a pork sirloin roast maybe that was why?) Next time I might increase the sauce 50% or maybe even double it, because it really needed just a little more sauce (I think hubby might have been a sauce hog haha). Even my picky toddler grandson inhaled it. Watch the salt though, it shouldn't need any additional salt because you add it to the meat before cooking and also to help sweat the onions and that's plenty - also use low sodium chicken broth! I would highly recommend watching his video first before you make it the first time. You will not be unhappy with this recipe. I would also advise sticking to the recipe exactly the first time because you will see it doesn't need any changes. It will definitely be one of our favorites from now on. I could not find creme fraiche so I made it. It does take 24 hours so if you can't find it make it the day before. Whip together 1 cup heavy cream 1 to 1 1/2 - tablespoons buttermilk. Let it sit 12 hrs. room temp lightly covered and then refrigerate 12 hrs. before using. (will keep for 10 days in the frige).

Absolutely delicious. My favourite pork stew recipe. Don't change a thing. I serve with the Chef John's polenta recipe also found on this site or on Foodwishes.com as well and make my own Creme Fraiche a couple days before also using Chef John's technique (pint whipping cream, 3 Tbsp Butermilk or plain active yogurt stir - 24 hrs lightly covered at room temp then 24 sealed in the fridge - viola Creme Fraiche) I love how Chef John's recipes rarely need any tweeking - perfect - every time. Try this and I doubt you'll regret it. While I go to the trouble to make my own creme fraiche I am sure sour cream would be just as lovely and in a pinch even plain whipping cream but it would lack that tiny tartness that the creme fraiche has ... still with all the other flavours and the fact that this is a stew I doubt it would be missed much)

THE BEST PORK STEW EVER. I used heavy cream instead of crème fresh (I couldn't find it at the store), and it still turned out delicious! Rave reviews from everyone at the potluck (I came home with NO leftovers), and my hubby asked me to make a batch for the house, after the potluck party. Definitely saved and pinned! Thanks Chef John!!

This recipe was amazing. We couldnt find creme fraiche or sage in our local grocery store so we used 1/4 Cup of cream and 2 tsp dried poultry seasoning and served with Chef Johns Polenta.

This was an outstanding recipe. The flavors of this dish were bold and rich. My family said that this was a keeper. Thanks for sharing Chef John

tried this an wow talk about one super meal an the taste is yummm, making this again for my niece, as it was so good. A must try dish thanks chef John

This turned out to be a tender and flavorful pork dish. I'm going to rank this in my personal top 5 recipes for sure! Thanks again Chef John.

I know Chef John would probably be upset at me for saying this, but i used sour cream and it turned out wonderful. I would rate this one of my favorite meals of all time.

This is wonderful. I did have to make a couple of substitutions out of necessity. I had to use ground sage and sour cream. I served over mashed taters. I will definitely make again.

Turned out great! Tender & delicious! My only adjustment was using sour cream instead of creme fraiche, but that's only because my grocery store is in the stone ages and didn't have any. Thoroughly enjoyed it and will definitely make again!

This is the best meal I have ever made. Followed the directions to a T. Chef John, You are my hero!

Only one person in my family eats pork and she LOVED it! She couldn't stop raving over the flavor and tenderness of the meat. She also liked Chef John's Perfect Polenta. Sorry Chef, I didn't creme fraiche or fry the sage leaves.

Made this exactly as written and it was wonderful. The pork was very tender and the sauce, combined with polenta, reminded us of the best parts of Thanksgiving dinner - the flavors of gravy over cornbread stuffing. My husband thought it was one of the best pork dishes I've ever made! This is worth the effort and then some.

I originally reviewed this back in January of 2014. This was my favorite meal to cook for my then fiance and we devoured it all winter. It was so delicious it made it very difficult to fit into my wedding dress and therefore it fell off our rotating menu for a little while... Well we just picked it up again! Only time will tell if we can self moderate and not over do it! We always cook it exactly as written with a few optimizations 1. Double the broth and cream fresh amounts, you won't regret having extra broth! 2. When we do not have creme fraiche we just use sour cream 3. We love it on polenta, mashed potatoes, OR we just cook the potatoes in it like a typical stew. All of them are delicious options.

First, thank you to the other reviewers who explained how to make creme fraiche with heavy cream and buttermilk. This is a great recipe and although it may sound like a lot of work it truly isn't..trust me.. if I can make it you can to! The fresh sage should definitely be used. It turned out great and the small amount of leftovers (small because we stuffed ourselves when made because it was so good) was also tasty the next day.

I used my pressure cooker for this recipe. I kept all the steps the same, just did it all inside the cooker, then cooked at high pressure for 10 min. I then added a slurry of 2 full tsp. cornstarch mixed with 1/4 water to thicken up the gravy. Perfect with Chef Johns Polenta!

Perfect! Served it with Chef John's polenta and it was delish. Looking forward to frying the polenta tomorrow for these leftovers. Oh, and did I mention my picky husband loved as well? This will me a regular meal in our house from now on.

Outstanding meal! Pork is fork-tender, sauce so flavorful, entire dish so aromatic. Thank you for another great recipe.

This is absolutely delicious! So rich and flavorful! I did use fresh sage and strongly recommend it . I did simmer/cook the stew much longer, about 4 hours as I thought it needed it to be tender. It was very tender indeed. I served it over mashed potatoes. This recipe is a keeper for sure! Highly recommend it!

Cooked this in the morning so flavors would develop through the day before serving for dinner. Excellent, excellent stew...extremely flavorful. Was afraid kids wouldn't eat polenta & made mashed potatoes instead so I wouldn't have to deal with anyone freaking out. Will put this into the family dinner rotation. Everyone loved it.

I'd hardly call these changes... rubbed sage for fresh sage additions. 1 piece triple thick cut butcher style smoked bacon for bacon addition, diced. Extra red pepper flakes and more rubbed sage to garnish. Served with Pacific brand jalapeño cheddar polenta. Ive never had anything like this before... seemed like a lot of sage but it was so creamy, rich and sagey. It was remarkable with the polenta, a cuisine I'm unfamiliar but unforgettable. Highly recommended if you're looking for a dish that's both naughty and sophisticated.

Wow! I had to rate this as soon as I finished eating it. I did not change a thing, except for using dry sage as I forgot to buy it while shopping for the ingredients. Next time I make this I will make sure to fresh as I am sure it will only make this even better. I served it over mashed potatoes as my husband requested. Love it, love it, love it!!!

Used 30% sour cream instead of creme fraiche and it still turned out amazing! Will have to make more sauce next time. I over-reduced at the end, but adjusted back with more stock.

Added 50% more sauce. One of our fav things to cook, always a hit.

This was wonderful! From the homemade creme fraiche to the polenta...excellent! So glad I tried it. Who would have thought fried sage leaves was even a thing and how good they would taste!

OMG, this is one of the most delicious dishes I ever put in my mouth. I made it as written but used almost all the 8 oz. carton of creme fraiche, very good chicken broth and fresh sage. As Chef John recommends it was served over a parmesaned polenta with butter and remainder of creame fraiche added. Streamed asparagus was the perfect side dish pairing. Try it, you'll love it, but don't substitute or omit the creme fraiche .

Yum. This was great and made a beautiful showing on top of the polenta as in Chef John's video.

This needs to be in everyone's rotation! It was simply restaurant quality food with a lovely sauce, delicious flavor and out of this world tender! Didn't change a thing, served over cheesy polenta from this site and fresh green beans. YUM!

Spectacular flavor -- served on top of rice this time, but the polenta sounds good, too. Next time, I'm tempted to double the meat and triple the sauce since it's so delicious.

Very delicious! The meat was incredibly tender. I made it as the recipe calls minus the bacon (not on hand). It was light and easy to make..

So delicious!! Will definitely be making it again! Prepared it with the polenta recipe as well.

I made it just the way Chef John did, until the very end. I used cornstarch to thicken the sauce. That's it. Oh... and I burnt the sage, so used parsley flakes instead. I am so happy to have found this recipe. Great comfort food!

I agree, this is the best pork stew ever. I doubled the recipe since I had a 3.5 lb pork shoulder. I followed the recipe to a tee and served with Chef Johns polenta recipe. Soooooo good. Thank you!

This turned out really well. Store didn't have fresh sage leaves and I'm sure it would have been even better with those, but I used the dried spice and it was still very good. I bought the polenta from the store to save time. The pork was super tender and delicious .

This is a good starter recipe, needs tweaking as it was too bland for me. I made it as written, but had some left over. With the other half, I added some white wine and thyme. Both were tender, but the second go-around was mush better because of the added seasoning.

Takes some time but sooooo worth it! I didn't fry the sage at the end but it didn't need it. It's beautiful and so yummy over mashed potatoes!

I will definitely make this again! And soon! For me this was the ultimate comfort food. I added mushrooms, because it sounded good. I also subbed yogurt for the creme fresh. We had it over Chef John's polenta. It was nice and filling. Perfect for a snowy day!

I made this last night and it was delicious! I followed the recipe exactly, even down to the fried sage leaves which were quite tasty!

I couldn't find creme fraiche, so I used a mix of buttermilk and heavy cream. Very tasty!

This was INSANELY good. I made it twice. The second time though, I didn’t have any creme friche...so I used whole milk Greek yogurt and it was even better!

My pork came out so creamy and rich it was absolutely divine. I served it over Parmesan-spikes polenta, as suggested. Make sure to add an extra scoop of polenta because the rich gravy like sauce will absorb in the polenta quickly. The fried sage leaves is NOT a step you should skip.

I made this for the second time tonight. First time was pretty good, this time it was amazing. I didn’t have creme fresche so I substituted sour cream, the rest was as written. The pork was so tender and delicious. Served over Chef John’s perfect polenta from this site. Will definitely make again.

We added mushrooms and it was great

This was heavenly. One of the best meals I've made from this site. I couldn't believe how tender the meat was! I didn't change a thing, even used homemade creme fraiche. It was perfect over Chef John's polenta!

My son makes this recipe all the time. It is absolutely delicious. Thanks for a great recipe chef John.

I saw this recipe this morning and went to the store and got all the ingredients. I doubled the recipe and I'm so glad I did. Excellent flavor and I served with the perfect polenta as suggested (although did use 1/2 milk and 1/2 low sodium chicken broth instead of water) and it was wonderful. I'll definitely be making this again.

Was very tasty. Very flavorful. Will make that again.

Excellent! Moist and flavorful. Thanks Chef John.

this is a real showstopper recipe. the pork comes out so flavorful and tender and the sauce is amazing. i make it with polenta half the time, and the other half just serve it over mashed potatoes with some grated parm. just be sure to watch the salt levels. chef john is an aggressive seasoner, which is perfect for me, but if you're a novice cook, i'd add half the salt and ramp it up to meet your taste. you can always add more salt, but you can't take it out.

I made a creme fraiche and served it over bow-tie pasta. It tasted great, looked great, just a little hard to eat .

Absolutely delicious and simple to make.....will definitely be my go to dinner when I need to impress. Had to substitute mashed potatoes for polenta and vegetable broth for chicken...I used what I had in the house. Loved the fried crunchy sage...nice touch.

Delicious. Pork just melts in your mouth. Savory gravy. Added in cornstarch with water. Making cheesy Parmesan polenta for underneath. Would like to try it using mushrooms? Maybe a little Dijon in sauce. But perfect as is.

This is absolutely delicious!! And it's Keto friendly! I served it with Loaded Cauliflower Casserole and Steamed Green Beans with a splash of balsamic vinegar. I could not find creme fraiche but Chef John has posted a recipe for homemade on allrecipes.com. I used 1/2 cup of an authentic Mexican crema and 1/2 C sour cream. Delish! I also thickened with 5 t cornstarch mixed with 5 t water. Perfection! One warning: Once the mixture begins to reduce, it reduces quickly. Next time, I will remove the stew from the heat a bit earlier so we have more gravy. And there will be a next time!

Very good. Followed recipe except used sour cream in place of creme frachie Doubled sauce but still wasn't enough. I believe I reduced it to much.

OMG this is a must keep recipe! Thanks Chef John. In my case I followed who suggested here to put some oregano ( be careful with dry seasonings they are strong, put just small or enough) I also added saute/ brown big chunks chopped red potatoes, big chunks of chopped round carrots and some sweet corn kernels (boiled them not hard and not mushy). I added them on the stew and its perfect!! I boiled the pork for 45 mins and check all the time making sure its not drying out. It turned very tender. I added some dissolve 1 tb of cornstarch with 1tb of water to have the thickness. Its awesome recipe :)

Who needs colder weather? The recipe rocks all year round. I made it for the first time and it was amazing! Made it with Chef John's Perfect Polenta (which was perfect) and my family LOVED both! Even as leftovers, both were perfect! Thanks Chef John! You never fail me.

This was fantastic as written. I did Not change anything, and will make it again.

Cooked this recipe today very flavorfu!. Will definitely make again. Did not have any creme designs so while cooking used milk before serving added sour cream. Served with Chef John's polenta recipe.

My husband's fav food now. It is delicious!

This was just ok. I had high hopes, but it was very salty, lived the polenta, which was a great accompaniment. Not sure I would make it again, if I did I would have to rethink it and do it in my instapot. Was time consuming.

I made it, as instructed, but did not fry the sage leaves for garnish, and used reserved bacon fat, so had no bacon bits. I served it over the polenta, with fresh grated parmesan cheese, and it was wonderful. It was not at all bland and I look forward to the leftovers and making it again in the near future.

This is now my husband's favorite dish!!! Outstanding....highly recommend.

This was delicious made as written. I was skeptical that the pork would be very tender but it absolutely was fork tender. I did cook longer than the recipe said to only because we weren't ready to eat yet. Made with mashed potatoes.

This was so easy to make and the flavor was amazing! I doubled the recipe for a family dinner. I did have to brown the pork in stages as to not overcrowd the pan. My 4 quart braising pan was perfect size for the doubled recipe. Instead of polenta I served over mashed potatoes and also made some buttered brussel sprouts which really worked well with the flavors. I wish I had taken a picture but, we were all so eager to dig in that I didn't even think about. Maybe next time.

Glad I tasted it before served. . . all gone.

I am always very happy with anything I make from Chef John! This was no exception I wish the meat turned out a little more tender but it was very tasty!

Wow. Made it, and it's totally awesome. When I put it all in the pot I had my doubts, but it came out beautifuly! ...as pork cooked in creme should. 5/5 will remake for ever.

I was expecting great things from this recipe after reading the reviews, However, It was just OK. Nothing that wowed us or would warrant a repeat performance. The pork was extremely tender, but the sauce was uninteresting. I love Chef John, but this was not a keeper.

Great and the fried sage leaves were a perfect addition. Went with the polenta perfectly. Like you know what you are doing Chef !

I followed this recipe to the letter, only i had to use heavy cream. It was fabulous! The husband doesn't rave about food, this one he raved about! New Fav!

Delicious! This is one of the best recipes I've found here and I've made A LOT... tasty and so satisfying. This was also fairly easy to make. The polenta is a must for me. I did not add the extra fried/crumbled sage leaves but it was still delicious and flavorful.

A winner. Made it just like recipe. A real comfort food. I can see that some would like more spice or heat but they can always add that after. Will definitely make this again.

I followed the recipe and made the polenta too. It was so delicious!!! Perfect for fall.

I followed the recipe exactly and it was way to greasy for me. DBF loved it and ate the leftovers the next day. The flavor was OK for me, if I make it again I'll omit allot of the oil and use a leaner cut of meat.

Absolutley the best pork roast recipe! The flavors blend together so well, plus it is so juicy and tender. I served it with mashed potatoes. which everyone liked. The only changes were I didn't salt the pork before browning and I added dried Porcinia mushrooms halfway through cooking.

I made this the first time as stated. It was amazing. However, I hate fat on my cooked meat so cutting up a pork shoulder is a huge pain. I use tenderloin now or pork that is much easier to cut up. It doesn't really matter (to me!). Kids didn't like the polenta much so now we use garlic mashed potatoes. Creme fraiche is great if you can find it or make it in advance. If not, cream or even sour cream work. Versatile recipe and yummy written as is or with your own tweaks.

Fabulous!!!

Absolutely perfect!

So easy and delicious. Will definitely make again

Third time I've made this. Really delicious. Didn't change anything. Didn't fry the sage. Next time. Wonderful comfort.

Great recipe. Made the mistake of tasting and adding salt before the sauce had reduced. Over did it a little but adjusted with a little sugar and emulsified butter. Next time I will wait to the end to season. My wife was none the wiser and loved it. Definitely will be making this again!

I just had a plate with the polenta, all I can say is it was stupid good! I followed the recipe (doubled it) I didn’t have extra sage leaves to fry, next time. Chef John, I like to put my own spin on many of your recipes, not this one. Perfection.

I made this using coconut milk because some family members have dairy issues. I was a bit worried about the outcome but it was delicious! The meat truly fell apart as I stirred it.