Cider-Braised Pork Shoulder with Apples

Recipe summary

Slow-cooked, rich and tender. This dish defines winter weekends. The cooked pork is so juicy and tender you can pull it apart with a fork. You can also substitute harissa sauce, by adding a small chopped fresh chile pepper to the onions instead. A 4-quart Dutch oven with a tight-fitting lid is my cooking vessel of choice here. But any heavy-bottomed large pot will do the trick.

Preparation time:
Cooking time:
Yield: 4

Ingredients

• 1 (about 3-4 pounds) bone-in fresh pork shoulder half (preferably picnic)
• 2 garlic, cloves, slivered
• coarse salt and freshly cracked black pepper
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 large onion, sliced into 1/4-inch slices
• 3/4 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
• 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1/4 teaspoon ground turmeric
• 1/8 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 1 teaspoon harissa, or any hot sauce
• 1/2 cup Riesling
• 3 cups unfiltered apple cider
• 1 cup chicken stock
• 1 cup water
• sprigs mint
• sprigs fresh coriander
• 2 Granny Smith apples, not peeled, cored, and cut in wedges
• chopped fresh coriander for garnish