Milk braised pork with lemon-gruyère sauce

Damn! This is the most tender pork you've ever had. Seriously. It's also crispy, cheesy, and goes great on top of a heap of sautéed swiss chard or collard greens. If you're looking for something a little more filling, pair your pork with rice.

The sauce is made with gruyère, an excellent cheese for cooking with because of its distinctive yet subtle taste. The flavor of gruyère changes as it ages, beginning with a nutty flavor and gradually becoming more earthy over time. 

For this recipe, you'll need a crockpot. If you don't have one, get one. You will never regret it, ever.

Milk Braised Pork

Cooking time: About 6.5 hours

• 7lb skin on, bone in pork shoulder (about 4 lbs without bones or skin)
• 2 medium onions, chopped
• 3 carrots, chopped
• 3 stalks celery, chopped
• 3 cups whole milk
• 10 sprigs fresh thyme
• 15 fresh sage leaves
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• Sea salt + fresh ground black pepper (at least 1 tbsp of each)

Put half of the thyme and half of the sage at the bottom of the crock pot.

Chop up all the veggies and put them with the herbs in the pot.

Use a knife to score the skin of the pork shoulder.

In a hot pan with 3 tbsp olive oil, sear the sides of the pork.

Place the seared shoulder in the crock pot, cover with remaining herbs.

Add milk, salt, and pepper. You can always add more salt and pepper later, so go easy at first.

Cook for 6 hours on high.

Before serving, sear pieces of cooked pork on high heat to crisp up the outsides. This adds a nice variation in texture, but also brings out the incredible flavor of the pork in a different way.


Lemon-Gruyère Sauce
Cooking time: About 15 minutes

• About 3 cups of liquid pork drippings 
• About 3 tbsp roux (more roux = thicker sauce!)
• 1/4 cup whole milk
• 1/4 cup shredded gruyere cheese (more cheese = never a bad idea)
• 1/8 tsp nutmeg
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• Sea salt + fresh ground black pepper to taste

Skim the fat off the top of the pork drippings. This should leave you with a clear-ish liquid, which you should bring to a boil in a saucepan.

Add roux, milk, and shredded cheese. Whisk until blended.

Add lemon, and nutmeg.

Add salt and pepper to taste.