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Chef John's Pumpkin-Braised Pork

Chef John's Pumpkin-Braised Pork

Name: Chef John's Pumpkin-Braised Pork
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 4 h 15 min
Total time: 12 h 45 min
Yield: 10 servings
Ingredients: 3 ½ pounds boneless pork shoulder; 1 tablespoon kosher salt; 2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper; ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper; ½ teaspoon dried thyme; 1 teaspoon crushed fennel seeds; 1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary; ⅓ cup thinly sliced shallots; 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour; 1 tablespoon olive oil; 1 volleyball-sized sugar pumpkin; 2 cups hard apple cider, or more as needed

Rating: 4.54 stars

13 Ratings
11 Reviews
8 Photos

You'll see this titled 'Pig in a Pumpkin' on the blog even though we're not using a whole pig, we're using a whole pumpkin! If you're looking for a fun, and very seasonably appropriate way to cook some pork shoulder, I can't think of a better, or more beautiful one, which is why I really hope you give this a try soon. Season the pork any way you want. I plated mine up with buttery mashed potatoes and Brussels sprouts.

By Chef John

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Recipe Summary

prep:

15 mins

cook:

4 hrs 15 mins

additional:

8 hrs 15 mins

total:

12 hrs 45 mins

Servings:

Yield:

10 servings

Nutrition Info

Directions

Step 1

Cut pork into large chunks. Place in a bowl. Add salt, pepper, cayenne, thyme, fennel seeds, rosemary, and shallots. Mix thoroughly and cover pork with parchment paper. Refrigerate to let flavors develop, 8 hours to overnight.

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Step 2

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
Step 3

Add flour to pork and mix to coat. Heat oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Cook pork in 2 batches until browned, about 3 minutes per side.
Step 4

Insert the tip of a knife at a 45-degree angle into the top half of the pumpkin. Slowly cut all the way around to remove the 'lid'. Scrape seeds and fibers off the bottom of the lid and inside of the pumpkin using a large spoon or ice cream scoop.
Step 5

Line the bottom of a baking pan with parchment paper and place pumpkin on top. Stuff the pumpkin with the browned pork; pour in cider. Cover with the top.
Step 6

Bake in the preheated oven until pork is very tender, about 4 hours. Pour in a little more cider after a few hours in the oven, since a lot of it evaporates. Remove from the oven and let rest; brush pumpkin with some of the rendered fat from the bottom of the pan.
Step 7

Scoop pork onto serving plates and cut out pieces of pumpkin to serve alongside. Combine remaining rendered fat with cooking liquid from inside the pumpkin. Let sauce rest for a few minutes so you can skim off most of the fat. Spoon sauce over the pork.

Chef's Notes:

While this would work in any pumpkin, try to find ones sold as 'sugar,' or 'pie' pumpkins, since they have a thicker, sweeter flesh, compared to the ornamental ones sold for jack-o'-lantering. I believe the variety I used was called 'cannonball,' but simply look for round, heavy-feeling varieties about the size of a volleyball.

You can use up to 4 pounds of pork.

Thanks to the little bit of flour on the pork, the sauce should have a nice thickness, but you can always adjust that with some more roux.

Nutrition Facts

Per Serving:

348 calories; protein 20.2g; carbohydrates 29.3g; fat 16.6g; cholesterol 62.5mg; sodium 631.9mg. Full Nutrition

Reviews (11)

Most helpful positive review

Alleyway Rover

11/08/2018

This is definitely going to be an autumn tradition in our house from now on. Made pretty much according to the recipe except that my grocery store only had smaller pie pumpkins. This actually turned out better since I filled two of them and then had more of the savory-sweet pumpkin to go with the meal. Read More

Helpful

(4)

Most helpful critical review

Michelle Orton

10/12/2019

I made this for my family. The meat turned out very tender and edible but we didn’t care for the flavors. Read More

13 Ratings

5 star values: 8
4 star values: 4
3 star values: 1
2 star values: 0
1 star values: 0

Reviews: Most Helpful

Most Helpful Most Positive Least Positive Newest

Alleyway Rover

11/08/2018

Helpful

(4)

antulien

11/07/2018

This was a really fun easy recipe! I had in-laws coming over and for dinner was making Chef John s Creamy Pork stew. Since I had pork and an extra pumpkin on hand I gave it a try. The seasonings and braising liquid were from the stew recipe. After browning the pork I stuffed as much pork as would fit into the pumpkin and added the stew sauce and some extra apple cider for the braising liquid then cooked as directed. It turned out just like the video and was a great way to show off to the in-laws! In my opinion the pumpkin was the best part as it did take on the delicious flavor from the pork. Great recipe Chef John! Read More

Helpful

(3)

Tctime874

12/15/2018

Easy to follow the pork was very tender and full of flavor. The cider never evaporated like the directions said it would but it turned out great will make it again. Read More

Helpful

(1)

ihi-kopu

10/20/2019

Though my kids don’t like pumpkin (at all) they loved the pork and ate everything but the pumpkin. Hubby and I loved this. After mixing the pork and marinating ingredients I put the pork mix in a tub and froze it. So when I fancied eating/cooking this dish I just had to defrost and cook - no waiting for marinade time! I like to do this with a few dishes and shopping day is prep day for a few dishes that have a long marinating time just like this. It worked brilliantly and was very tasty. Read More

Roxanne Sundahl

10/30/2019

Made it in small pie pumpkins & it turned out amazing. Didn t need to cook as long and the meat was very tender! Read More

MSCLIO

10/12/2019

This was absolutely divine . everybody loved it even the little kids. The pork was battery tender, so flavorful with all the wonderful spices. I can’t wait to make this again. Read More

Michelle Orton

10/12/2019

I made this for my family. The meat turned out very tender and edible but we didn’t care for the flavors. Read More

Sharyl

11/05/2018

Happy to try this recipe and use a pie pumpkin in a different recipe other than pumpkin bread or pie. Made as written and was happy with the flavor of the meat using fennel seeds and pleased with the tenderness of the meat. My husband was surprised how nice the pumpkin tastes (cross between a squash and sweet potatoe). Used my immersion blender on the cooked sauce with a little of the pumpkin for a smoother gravy. Don't forget to save the pumpkin seeds to bake with butter and salt. Read More

RARAJ Devine

09/20/2019

Simple, beautiful, impressive to present. I tested using two smaller squash. One baked per the recipe while the second I added apple, grapes & sweet peppers so I cooked everything separately - pressure cooking the pork, convection for the squash, and skillet for the "guts". Then combined everything and baked it an additional 1.5 hours. Seemed to work well but the original recipe is less labor. Read More

More Reviews

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All Reviews for Chef John's Pumpkin-Braised Pork

- of Reviews

Chef John's Pumpkin-Braised Pork

Servings Per Recipe: 10
Calories: 348.2

% Daily Value *

protein: 40 %

carbohydrates: 9 %

dietary fiber: 9 %

sugars:

fat: 26 %

saturated fat: 29 %

cholesterol: 21 %

vitamin a iu: 538 %

niacin equivalents: 70 %

vitamin b6: 28 %

vitamin c: 56 %

folate: 17 %

calcium: 10 %

iron: 24 %

magnesium: 21 %

potassium: 42 %

sodium: 25 %

thiamin: 60 %

calories from fat:

*Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.

**Nutrient information is not available for all ingredients. Amount is based on available nutrient data.

(-)Information is not currently available for this nutrient. If you are following a medically restrictive diet, please consult your doctor or registered dietitian before preparing this recipe for personal consumption.

Reviews for: Photos of Chef John's Pumpkin-Braised Pork

1 of 11

All Reviews

Alleyway Rover

11/08/2018

Helpful

(4)

antulien

11/07/2018

Helpful

(3)

Tctime874

12/15/2018

Easy to follow the pork was very tender and full of flavor. The cider never evaporated like the directions said it would but it turned out great will make it again.

Helpful

(1)

ihi-kopu

10/20/2019

Roxanne Sundahl

10/30/2019

Made it in small pie pumpkins & it turned out amazing. Didn t need to cook as long and the meat was very tender!

MSCLIO

10/12/2019

This was absolutely divine . everybody loved it even the little kids. The pork was battery tender, so flavorful with all the wonderful spices. I can’t wait to make this again.

Michelle Orton