Roasted Pork Loin

I got up early and cooked for the shelter this morning.  I bought huge pork loin roasts and  cooked 30 pounds for them. I started slicing it by hand but realized it was going to take forever plus I really wanted to slice it as thin as possible.  So, I pulled out my electric meat slicer which did the job wonderfully.  But, boy what a cleanup job!  Those slicers are just incredibly hard to clean. In the end, I spent as much time cleaning the slicer as I would if I had sliced it all by hand.  It really turned out good though.  Here is the recipe for a 3 pound pork loin if you want to try it.

1 (2-1/2 to 3 pound) pork loin
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/8 teaspoon dried thyme
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 tablespoon cooking oil
2 cups chicken broth
2 tablespoons lemon juice
3 teaspoons low-salt soy sauce
3 tablespoons cornstarch
Salt and pepper
Throw everything except the cornstarch
 in a dutch oven and cook it for 4-5 hours at 275 degrees.  When the meat is done, remove it from the pan and set it aside.  Place the pot with all of the liquid on a burner over medium heat.  Add the cornstarch to 1/2 cup of cold water and mix thoroughly then pour it into the hot liquid and whisk until it begins to thicken.  Pour the gravy over the thinly sliced pork.

 I also made a lot of mashed potatoes.

Enough to feed 100 guys.

I had planned on making rolls but was running out of time so I raided my freezer and pulled out all of my frozen homemade rolls and bread.

The shelter got everything from white sandwich bread, semolina Italian bread, cabbage rolls, French bread rolls and the Pan de Sal rolls I just posted recently.  And now I have room in my freezer!  As usual, no one knew I was coming though I called yesterday and gave them a heads up.  No one communicates at that place.  When I arrived, I could not even begin to identify what they were in the midst of preparing for lunch. It looked awful.  I carried the roast pork in and it went straight to the kitchen and whatever their stuff was,  it was immediately put aside. As soon as the aroma moved through the house, everyone came running to see what I had brought.  One of the guys was grinning ear to ear.  He announced to the group that the only time he smiles like that is when he sees my car pull into the alley.  I love these guys!