DAILY DINNERS

If the joint is cured, you may consider boiling it first to draw out the salt.

To boil and bake a joint, place it in a pan and cover with cold water, add cloves, black peppercorns or bay leaves to flavour if required. Bring the water to the boil, when the water boils, reduce the heat, cover and simmer for 10 mins per 450g plus 10 mins; drain the joint and place in a roasting tin.

If you are not boiling the joint,  take the pork out of the fridge about an hour or so before cooking. The time elapsed before cooking allows the pork to warm to room temperature (which is better for an even roast). Make small incisions in the flesh, then poke in a few slices of garlic, if using, and rosemary.

Preheat the oven to 240C/fan 220C/gas 9. Turn the heat down to 200C/fan 180C/gas 6. Stand the meat on a roasting tray with the skin facing up and roast for the remainder of the cooking time 10 mins per 450g plus 10 mins (or, if you haven't boiled it first, 20 mins per 450g plus 20 mins) until the core temperature has reached 68C when checked with a meat thermometer.

Just before the end of cooking, remove the joint from the oven and rub some brown sugar into the skin and put back into the oven for the remainder of the cooking time. When cooked, remove the joint from the pan and let it rest in a warm spot for 15 minutes before serving. Serve a generous rack-slice per person.

Make the gravy: pour the chicken stock into a small pan. Use a tbsp of the liquid to make the maizena into a paste and dissolve in the liquid. Bring to the boil and stir until it thickens. Remove the grease from the roasting tin and pour the gravy into the tin and let it boil for a few minutes, scraping up all the nice sticky bits from the pan.

To make the apple sauce: tip the apples into a pan with a splash of water, then stir on a medium heat for 10-15 minutes, stirring with a wooden spoon until they have broken down to a near puree. Take off the heat, then stir in the sugar and let it cool. 

To make the Parsnip & potato mash, boil the parsnips and potato in a pot of salted water until tender, about 15 mins. Drain and press through a ricer back into the pot. Put over a medium-low heat, stir in the cream and some salt to taste until the parsnip mixture is warmed through. Remove from the heat and keep warm.