Sofa Moments: The Perfect Winter Warmer

It’s been a tough couple of weeks but there’s no better time than now to relax on the sofa, blankets in abundance and sink into a bowl of hearty, winter warming food. With that in mind, we think that this comforting pork, apple and mustard casserole from Kallo is the ideal Sunday dinner and we wouldn’t blame you if you had a second, or even third, helping.

Serves: 4

Ingredients:

800g pork shoulder, cut into 3 cm chunks
2 tbsp plain flour, seasoned with a little salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 tbs olive oil
1 large onion, sliced
1 celery stick, finely diced
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 Kallo French Onion Stock Cube, dissolved in 250ml boiling water
250ml dry cider (optional, but double the quantity of stock if you leave it out)
Loose handful of sage leaves, chopped
1 tbsp English mustard
2 cooking apples, peeled, cored and cut into chunks
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C/ 180°C / gas 6

2. Toss the pork pieces in the seasoned flour until evenly coated or make the recipe gluten free by leaving out the flour. Heat the oil in a flameproof casserole dish and fry the meat in batches until golden brown on all sides. Don’t overcrowd the pan or the meat will sweat rather than fry. Once all the meat has browned return it all to the dish and add the onions, celery and garlic and fry for a few minutes to allow the vegetables to soften a little.

3. Pour over the stock and cider and stir through the sage and mustard, bring up to the boil and reduce the heat to a gentle simmer. Cover then transfer to the oven to cook for an hour.

4. Remove from the oven, stir through the apples, re-cover and return to the oven for another 30 minutes until the apples are soft and the meat tender. You can leave the lid off at this stage if the sauce needs to reduce a little. Check the seasoning and add a little more salt and pepper if necessary. Thicken the casserole at the end of cooking by mixing in a paste made with 1 tablespoon of cornflour with a little cold water. Stir through and heat gently on the hob until thickened.