Peach-stuffed Pork Loin

Peach-stuffed Pork Loin ready to go in the oven.

Today's Joy: Culinary Success!
Reader, as you can see from the photos, my peach-inspired summer dinner was a raging success! A lot of work went into it, but oh, it was fun! And I learned several new skills. I butterflied a piece of meat and stuffed, rolled & tied it for roasting--all for the first time ever! Thanks to the easy instructions in my July, 2010 issue of Martha Stewart Living, I was very pleased with the results.


Right out of the oven.

As promised yesterday, here is the Peach-stuffed Pork recipe I used. While pretty labor-intensive, it was totally delicious and well worth the effort. I found it much more manageable to break the prep up over a couple days. Please note: I did alter the recipe a tad from the original posted in MSL. I added ground ginger to the seasoning mix and increased some of the ingredient quantities to accommodate a more generously-sized pork loin.

Peach-stuffed Pork (courtesy of Martha Stewart Living: July, 2010)
For instructions on how to dry fresh peaches or make your own quick & easy peach glaze, click here.

1 cup water
9 peaches, dried, or 6 ounces store-bought dried peaches
1 boneless pork loin (2 1/2 lbs.), trimmed
coarse salt & freshly ground pepper
1/4 tsp. ground cloves
1/4 tsp. ground ginger
1 tbl. all-purpose flour (for dusting)

#1 Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
Bring water to a boil in small saucepan.
Coarsely chop dried peaches and add to water.
Return to a boil.
Remove from heat and let stand 20 minutes.
Remove peaches using a slotted spoon and squeeze; reserve liquid (can be added to your pre-made glaze).

#2 Butterfly pork loin: starting 3/4 inch from top of loin, make a horizontal cut into side, slicing through meat in short strokes and leaving about 1 inch intact at outer edge.
Unfold meat as if opening a book.
Cut a vertical slit 3/4-inch deep at seam, and repeat to make a horizontal cut in the opposite direction.
Pound to an even thickness with meat mallet.

#3 Stir together a seasoning mix of salt, pepper, ginger & clove and sprinkle over pork loin.
Spread drained peaches over pork, leaving a 1-inch border on one short end.
Roll up pork from short end to enclose filling.
Tie together with kitchen twine to shape and hold in filling.
Sprinkle with seasoning mixture; dust with flour.
Place in a roasting pan, seam side down.

#4 Roast pork for 20 minutes.
Reduce oven temp to 350 degrees and roast until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the center reaches 138 degrees, about 25 minutes more.
Brush with glaze and roast for 5 more minutes.
Transfer pork to a platter and let rest for 10 minutes.
Brush with glaze again.
Untie pork; cut into 1-inch-thick slices.
Serve with extra glaze on side.

This dish appeals to a wide range of palettes, from the meat & potatoes crowd to our fastidious foodies. It also gave me some ideas for how to adapt summer fruits like peaches, mangoes & papayas to dishes involving chicken or fish. Will keep you posted on those results too.


A lovely summer meal: peach-stuffed pork loin, oregano roasted potatoes & fresh steamed asparagus.

For Oregano Roasted Potatoes recipe, click here.

First patio dinner of the season.

Thank you, my dear family, for being such a joy to cook for!