Name: Slow Cooked Pork & Cider Hotpot
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 360 min
Total time: 375 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: British
Ingredients: 800 g diced pork shoulder, cut into 4cm pieces; 300 ml chicken stock; 600 g waxy potatoes, peeled and cut into 2cm chunks; 1 tbsp wholegrain mustard; 2 tbsp plain flour; Crusty sourdough bread, to serve; salt and black pepper; 2 leeks, trimmed, washed, and sliced into thick rounds; 4 sprigs fresh thyme; 1 large onion, diced; 3 garlic cloves, crushed; 2 tbsp vegetable oil; 150 g smoked bacon lardons; 400 ml dry cider; Fresh parsley, to serve

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Slow Cooked Pork & Cider Hotpot — British

Ingredients

800 g diced pork shoulder, cut into 4cm pieces
300 ml chicken stock
600 g waxy potatoes, peeled and cut into 2cm chunks
1 tbsp wholegrain mustard
2 tbsp plain flour
Crusty sourdough bread, to serve
salt and black pepper
2 leeks, trimmed, washed, and sliced into thick rounds
4 sprigs fresh thyme
1 large onion, diced
3 garlic cloves, crushed
2 tbsp vegetable oil
150 g smoked bacon lardons
400 ml dry cider
Fresh parsley, to serve

Method

Preheat the oven to 160°C / 140°C fan / Gas 3. Pat the pork shoulder pieces dry and season generously with salt and pepper. Heat the oil in a large, oven-safe casserole over a high heat and brown the pork in two batches for 4 minutes per side until deeply caramelised. Remove to a plate.
Reduce the heat to medium and add the bacon lardons. Cook for 3–4 minutes until the fat renders and the lardons turn golden. Add the diced onion and cook for 6–7 minutes until softened and translucent. Stir in the crushed garlic and thyme sprigs and cook for 1 minute until fragrant.
Scatter the flour over the onion mixture and stir vigorously for 2 minutes to cook it out. Pour in the cider a little at a time, stirring constantly as the sauce bubbles and thickens.
Pour in the chicken stock and stir to combine. Return the browned pork to the casserole with any collected juices. Bring to a simmer, then scatter in the potato chunks and push them into the liquid.
Cover tightly with a lid and transfer to the oven. Cook for 1 hour, then add the sliced leeks, pushing them into the sauce. Cover again and cook for a further 45 minutes until the pork pulls apart easily and the potatoes are cooked through.
Stir the wholegrain mustard into the casserole and fold everything gently together. The potatoes will help thicken the sauce as they begin to break down slightly at the edges.
Taste and season well with salt and black pepper. Discard the thyme sprigs. Serve in deep bowls with a generous scattering of fresh parsley and crusty bread alongside for mopping. To batch: cool thoroughly and freeze in portions; reheat gently on the hob, adding a splash of stock if the sauce has thickened too much.