Grace your holiday table with this majestic Crown Pork Roast with stuffing! This stunning pork loin entrée is shaped into a magnificent crown, brined, slathered with a mustardy, garlic-herb mix and slow-roasted to juicy, succulent deliciousness.
We filled the center of the roast with a savory cornbread sausage stuffing and surrounded the crown with a garland of roasted sweet apples and caramelized cipollini onions. ❤️
Imagine this showstopper crown pork roast as the centerpiece on your Christmas dinner table. Yes! You can do this!
This is the ultimate pork roast and it makes an unforgettable dinner. Our crown roast rack of lamb makes a beautiful presentation as well but pork is a more budget cut of meat.
What Cut is a Crown Pork Roast?
There isn’t an actual cut called a crown. The crown is created by joining two racks of pork loins together into a circular shape with ribs facing out and the frenched bones sticking up.
Shallow cuts are made before the loins are tied together which allows the meat to expand as it cooks. The inner part of the circular meat forms a small bowl and is often filled with stuffing.
What you Need to Create this Crown Roast of Pork:
Here is a list of ingredients you will need to create this. I know it is a long list but it is a 2-day, 3-part project….
first the brining, then the rub to get that delicious flavor, and finally the roasting. You will be rewarded with a moist, tender and juicy crown pork roast.
For the Pork Roast Brine:
- Water
- Brown sugar
- Kosher salt
- Red wine vinegar
- Black peppercorns
- Red pepper flakes
- Dried bay leaves
- 1 (10 pound) Pork Crown Roast, Butcher-ready
For the Pork Rub:
- Fresh garlic
- Fresh thyme leaves
- Dijon mustard
- Black pepper
- Olive oil
For the Stuffing:
This is the exact stuffing we used for our Sausage Stuffed Acorn Squash. If you want a treat, print the recipe and bake up an easy dinner.
- Cornbread stuffing mix
- Pork sausage
- Onion
- Celery
- Fresh sage
- Dried sage
- Ground fennel seed
- Dried cranberries
- Salt/pepper
- Egg
- Chicken broth
- White wine
- Butter
How to Create the Pork Crown:
Have you ever prepared a pork crown roast yourself? There are two options to forming the pork loins into a crown.
The first option is for the adventuresome chef: Buy the loins, trim, french the bones, and tie them into a circular shape.
The second option is for the practical chef: There is no shame in getting a little help from a professional! A big high-5 to my butcher friend, Jeremy! He did all the hard work joining the pork into a crown and frenching the bones. He saved me a ton of time.
Call your local butcher and ask them to do this for you. They will be more than happy to do all the trimming, french the bones, and tie the loins together into a crown shape. This was my option and there wasn’t any extra charge for the service. ?
Let’s Get Started with this Crown Pork Roast:
We are listing brief steps for each portion of the process and I promise this is not as intimidating as you are thinking! Be sure to scroll to the bottom of the post and print out the full recipe instructions and the tips in the Note section:
This is a 2-day process as the pork will soak in a flavorful brine for 12 to 24 hours. If you are pressed for time you can skip the brining process if you like. However…., even a shorter overnight brine will increase the flavor and moistness of roasted pork.
Make the brine:
- Bring 4 cups of water, brown sugar and salt to a boil, stir until dissolved. Pour the hot brine into a larger container. Add the remaining 4 cups of (cold) water, the vinegar, peppercorns, red pepper flakes and the bay leaves. Place the container into the refrigerator until cool.
- Set the pork crown into the cooled brine so it is submerged. The pork will want to float so weigh it down with a plate and something heavy to keep it submerged. I used the cast iron lid to my Dutch oven. Set the container/pork into the refrigerator and let it soak in the brine for up to 24 hours, or as much time as you can spare.
- Remove the pork from the brine and place it on a pad of paper towels to drain. Pat the surface of the pork with paper towels until completely dry. This is an important step as removing the excess moisture from the surface of the pork will allow the pork rub to adhere.
Tips for brining the roast
- Choose a soup pot or a container that is large enough to comfortably hold the pork roast and keep it submerged in the brine. It is ok if the bones do not get submerged.
- To cool the brine down faster, add several cups of ice to the mixture.
Make the Pork Rub:
- Mix together the garlic, thyme, mustard, black pepper and half of the olive oil to make a thick paste. Set the pork roast on a plate and pat it as dry as you can. This is an important step as removing the surface moisture helps the rub adhere better.
- Slather the surface of the pork with the rub. Go ahead, use your hands it is much more efficient than any utensil in your gadget drawer! Be sure to smear some rub on the meat in the inner circle.
- Place the coated pork on a wire rack set over a rimmed baking sheet. Insert a meat probe thermometer between 2 of the ribs into the thickest part of the pork.
- Let the pork sit on your countertop for an hour or so to absorb that awesome flavor from the rub.
For the Cornbread Sausage Stuffing:
While the pork is sitting doing its thing you will have plenty of time to prepare the cornbread stuffing.
If you are not a fan of cornbread stuffing, this savory combination with sausage and cranberries just may change your mind, it is that good!
- Add the cornbread mix to a large bowl.
- Brown the sausage in a skillet. Push the browned sausage to the side and add the onions and celery. Cook until the onions are translucent; then add the mixture to the cornbread mix.
- Add the fresh sage, dried sage, fennel, cranberries and seasoning. Lightly whisk the egg, drizzle over the stuffing mixture and toss to combine.
- In a saucepan, bring the chicken broth, wine and butter to a boil and pour over the stuffing mixture, stirring to combine. Let the stuffing sit for a few minutes to fully absorb.
- Spoon about 2 cups of the stuffing into the center cavity of the pork crown roast. Do not pack the stuffing. Spoon the remaining stuffing into a greased casserole dish and bake it separately.
Roasting the Crown Pork Roast:
Pork loin is a lean cut of protein. Roasting this regal crown roast low and slow at 250°F will yield a juicy flavorful result that doesn’t even need a gravy or sauce.
According to the USDA the safe minimum doneness is 145°F. This is the temperature after the rest time. At this temperature, the pork will be a little pink inside and deliciously juicy and tender.
One of the most important tools in your kitchen is a good, dependable meat probe thermometer.
We are setting our probe thermometer at a target temperature of 135°F. During the 30 minute rest time the carry-over temperature will continue to increase to the safe zone of 145°F.
- Transfer the roast to the preheated 250° oven and roast until the thermometer reaches 135°F.
- Remove the roast from the oven, tent and let rest for 15-45 minutes until the temperature reaches 145°F.
- Cover the stuffing with a piece of foil and wrap pieces of foil around each bone. This will keep them from burning during the hot blast.
- Increase the oven to 500°F and transfer the roasted pork roast back to the oven. Roast in the hot oven until brown and crisp, about 10 minutes. Remove from the oven, place on a large platter, re-tent with foil and rest for another 15 minutes.
Serving This Crown Pork Roast:
Elevate his regal roast on a pedestal as it deserves to be the centerpiece of your table. Garnish the platter around the edge of the roast with sprigs of fresh thyme, roasted apples and cipolini onions. Enjoy, and Merry Christmas to all! ❤️
More Recipes You Will Love
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Is your Christmas dinner being scaled down this year? If so, this Roasted Turkey Breast with Garlic Herb Butter may be the perfect entrée choice! This is a bone-in, skin-on turkey breast roasted with a generous amount of garlic-y herb compound butter. The result is moist and juicy turkey breast with crispy skin.
Take life easy and serve up a Spiral Ham for your holiday dinner. Just wrap the ham in a blanket of foil and reheat for a juicy, moist treat.
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Crown Pork Roast
Ingredients
For the Brine:
- 8 cups water divided
- 1-½ cups brown sugar 300g
- 1-½ cups Kosher salt 350g
- 1 cup red wine vinegar
- 1 tablespoon black peppercorns
- ⅛ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 (10 pound) Pork Crown Roast, butcher-ready tied, 16-ribs
For the Pork Rub:
- 12 cloves of garlic grated or minced
- 3 tablespoons fresh thyme leaves plus 8-10 thyme sprigs
- ¼ cup Dijon mustard
- 1 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper
- 4 tablespoons olive oil divided
For the Stuffing:
- 1 12 oz. package dry corn bread stuffing mix
- 16 oz. pork sausage
- 1 large onion chopped
- 1 cup chopped celery
- 3 tablespoons chopped fresh sage
- 1 tablespoon dried sage
- 1 teaspoon ground fennel seed
- 1-½ cups dried cranberries
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 egg
- 2 cups chicken broth
- ½ cup dry white wine
- 1 stick butter
Instructions
For the Brine:
- In a saucepan, bring 1 quart of water, brown sugar and salt to a boil, stirring until dissolved.
- Pour the brine into a container large enough to fit the pork roast comfortably. Add the remaining water, the red wine vinegar, peppercorns, red pepper flakes and bay leaves. Place the container in the refrigerator and cool. About 1 hour. Alternatively, to cool the brine faster, place a few cups of ice cubes in the hot brine.
- Set the pork roast into the cooled brine so the pork is submerged with the brine. It is not necessary to submerge the bones. The roast will want to ‘float’ so weigh it down with a plate or a heavy lid to keep it submerged. I used the cast iron lid to my Dutch oven to weigh it down and keep submerged. Transfer the container/pork roast to the refrigerator and brine the pork for 12-24 hours.
- Remove the pork from the brine and discard the brine and aromatics. Pat the pork with paper towels until completely dry.
For the Pork Rub:
- In a small dish, combine the garlic, thyme leaves, Dijon mustard, black pepper and 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Using (clean) hands, rub the mixture over the surface of the pork working into the expansion cuts and the inner area of the roast. Insert a meat probe thermometer into the thickest portion of the roast without touching a bone.
- Place the roast on a wire rack set over a rimmed baking sheet and let rest for 1 hour.
Meanwhile, Prepare the Stuffing:
- Place the cornbread stuffing into a large bowl.
- In a skillet set over medium-high, cook the sausage, breaking it up with a fork as it cooks, about 5 minutes.
- Add the remaining 2 tablespoons of oil to the skillet and add the onion and celery. Sauté until the onion is translucent, about 2-3 minutes. Remove from the heat and transfer to the bowl with the stuffing mix.
- Add the chopped sage, dried sage, cranberries, salt and pepper to the bowl. toss to combine.
- Whisk the egg lightly and pour over the stuffing mix, tossing to combine.
- In a small saucepan, heat the chicken broth and butter to a boil; then pour over the dry stuffing and toss to combine. Let the mixture sit for 2-5 minutes to absorb, stirring occasionally.
- Spoon a portion of the stuffing mixture lightly into the center cavity of the pork roast. Mound it up nicely but do not pack it in. Brush the top of the stuffing with melted butter.
- Add the remaining stuffing to an oiled baking dish, cover with foil and refrigerate, cook separately at 350°F covered with the foil for 30 minutes; then remove the foil and bake until the top is brown and crisp.
Roast the Pork:
- Preheat the oven to 250°F and adjust the oven rack to the lower 3rd position so the roast will be sitting in the middle of the oven.
- Transfer the roast to the oven and roast until the thermometer reaches 135°F. Remove from the oven, tent with foil and allow to rest for 30-45 minutes and the internal temperature reaches 145° on the meat thermometer.
- Increase the oven to 500°F
- Cover the stuffing with a little foil and wrap each bone with foil to prevent charring under the hot blast of the oven. Transfer the roasted pork back to the oven. Roast until brown and crisp, about 8-10 minutes. Remove from the oven, place on a large platter, re-tent with foil and rest for another 10-15 minutes.
To serve the roast:
- Remove and discard the foil caps from the pork bones and the foil covering the stuffing. Cut, remove and discard the twine around the crown. Arrange any vegetables around the edge of the pork roast. Transfer the roast to the table and carve between the bones into servings accompanied with a spoonful of the stuffing.
Notes
- Ask your butcher to french and prepare the pork into a circular crown roast at least a day or two in advance.
- Brine the pork as long as your schedule allows, up to 24 hours.
- If preferred, fill the pork cavity with fresh herbs and garlic cloves and bake the stuffing separately.
- Wrapping the bones will prevent them from charring during the final blast of heat at the browning process.
- During the last rest time prepare your choice of sides to accompany the roast. We cut 4 apples into quarters and peeled 12 small cipolini onions, drizzled all with olive oil and roasted them in a 425°F oven until tender, about 12-15 minutes.
angiesrecipes
Saturday 12th of December 2020
This is a stunner! Really impressive...You are a star cook, my friend.
Pat Nyswonger
Saturday 12th of December 2020
Thank you, Angie! This was so moist, juicy and delicious! It was actually pretty easy to put together and anyone can do this! I hope you are having a great Christmas season!