Tuscan Pork Loin with Artichokes, Fava Beans, Italian Greens, and Pecorino
This simple Italian pork dish is all about crisp, fresh, spring flavor. A salad of raw baby artichokes, fava beans, arugula, and frisée keeps the palate clear and refreshed, while shards of pecorino add a sharp, salty note. The lemon-olive oil marinade adds brightness to the dish, and also cuts the fat of the pork, keeping the flavors light. Both the marinade and garnish salad are very easy to prepare, and the dish makes for a neatly presented, light, spring dinner.
This dish is the essence of Tuscan cooking – simple and fresh. It celebrates the great bounty of spring, and the good fortune to have a tender roast pork loin for dinner.
Heat & Knives
The Recipe
Source: The Red Cat Cookbook
2 pounds pork loin
½ cup plus 2 tablespoons lemon juice
½ cup plus 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
3 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
3 branches rosemary
salt
freshly ground black pepper
1 small bunch arugula
1 small head frisee, ends trimmed, white and yellow parts only
1 baby artichoke
8 ounces fava beans in the pod, peeled
1 teaspoon sliced mint
1 teaspoon sliced parsley
1 ½ ounces Pecorino, shaved into shards with a vegetable peeler
Put the pork in a baking dish or other shallow vessel. Add ¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons of the lemon juice, 3 tablespoons of the oil, the garlic, and the rosemary branches, and toss to coat the pork. Cover and refrigerate overnight.
Preheat the oven to 400 F.
Set a roasting pan over two stovetop burners and heat the pan over medium-high heat. Remove the pork from its marinade, brushing off any solids. Season the pork with salt and pepper, add it to the pan, and cook, turning the pork as needed, until a light brown crust forms on all sides, approximately 8 minutes. Transfer the pan to the oven and roast until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the center of the pork reads 145 F, approximately 40 minutes more. Remove the pan from the oven. Transfer the pork to a plate, tent with foil to keep warm, and let rest for 10 minutes. (During this time, the internal temperature should rise to 150 to 155 F.)
While the pork is resting, make a salad by putting the arugula and frisée in a bowl. Trim the artichokes by cutting off the top third with a heavy kitchen knife, then trimming the stem to 1 inch. Peel the stem to remove the bitter green exterior, then shave the artichoke on a mandoline (or slice very thin with a knife) and add the slices to the bowl. Add the fava beans, remaining ¼ cup lemon juice, remaining ½ cup oil, the mint, and parsley, and toss.
Slice the pork and divide among 4 plates. Top with the salad, then with some shaved cheese.
Note to the cook: Peel fava beans by removing the tough outer pod, then carefully remove the skin that envelopes each bean. Eight ounces fava beans in the pods yield about ¼ cup beans.
