By Melissa Clark
- Total Time
- 20 minutes, plus at least 4½ hours’ marinating and roasting
- Rating
- 5(311)
- Notes
- Read community notes
Featured in: To Impress the Guest, a Beast of a Roast
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Ingredients
Yield:10 to 12 servings
- 1½teaspoons fennel seeds
- Rosemary leaves from 2 bushy sprigs
- 5garlic cloves, coarsely chopped
- ¼cup sage leaves and tender sprigs
- Finely grated zest of 1 lemon
- 1teaspoon fennel pollen (optional)
- 1tablespoon plus 1 pinch coarse kosher salt
- 5tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 18- to 9-pound crown roast of pork (10 to 12 ribs)
- 1teaspoon cracked black pepper
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (12 servings)
278 calories; 20 grams fat; 6 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 10 grams monounsaturated fat; 2 grams polyunsaturated fat; 3 grams carbohydrates; 2 grams dietary fiber; 0 grams sugars; 22 grams protein; 291 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Preparation
Step
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In small skillet, toast fennel seeds until fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes.
Step
2
Place toasted fennel seeds, rosemary, garlic, sage, lemon zest, fennel pollen (if using) and pinch of salt in blender. Run blender briefly to chop everything up, then add olive oil, and blend until mixture becomes a paste, scraping down sides occasionally with a rubber spatula.
Step
3
Wipe pork with paper towels, then season evenly with remaining tablespoon salt and the pepper. Smear herb paste all over meat, making sure to coat the middle and the crevices on the sides of the chops. Let marinate at room temperature for at least 2 hours, or longer in refrigerator. (Overnight is ideal.) If you’ve chilled the meat, bring to room temperature for at least an hour before roasting.
Step
4
Heat oven to 450 degrees. Place roast upside down (bones down) in large roasting pan. (You can use a rack to help steady it if you like.) Roast for 20 minutes, then turn heat down to 350 and continue roasting until meat registers 145 degrees on an instant-read thermometer, about 1½ to 2 hours longer. Let rest 10 minutes before carving.
Ratings
5
out of 5
311
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Cooking Notes
Jesse Mase
What a great idea, Melissa, and thank you so much. We made the crown roast for dinner guests tonight and it was the best pork crown I have ever tasted. So juicy and flavorful! I used the center tube section of a tube cake pan to hold the roast from tipping. When it was almost done, I took it off the tube and turned it bones side up and finished it under the broiler to brown that side too. Delicious!
Jane
I love this recipe! It is perfectly tasty & showstoppingly beautiful. It's going to be a holiday tradition at our house.
I dry aged the roast in the fridge for 2-3 days prior to cooking. This seems to seal in all the juices. I also added a smidge of Dijon to the rub (in hopes good "stick-to-itiveness"{it worked}).
This is a delicious, fun, & beautiful presentation holiday roast centerpiece! Can hardly wait til next time.
Conner
I used a 16 rib 12 lb. crown roast and assumed that the cooking time would be longer. However, after turning the oven down from 450, I only roasted it another 1.5 hours when the temp reached 145. The meat was super flavorful and juicy! Definitely be sure to check the temp often because I would’ve hated to see this overcooked.
Mary
This was fantastic and super easy. Put rub on, put in a brine bag, and let sit for two days in an iced cooler. Cooked upside down and for about the time called for in the recipe (it may have not been full room temp when I put it in). Came out perfect. Served with cranberry sauce. I have made much more labor intensive crown roasts (brined, bacon wrapped, stuffed) and this was just as good if not better. Will make again next Christmas.
Jodie
Lots of pan drippings on mine--added white wine, butter and flour--very nice addition at the table.
stone
Cooked 4 rib roast for 1 hour @450.Used herbs de Provence with garlic.Salt pepper and olive oil. Delicious.11.14.18Did not marinate.
Jim
Is it OK to make the rub ahead of time? ( Then hold for about 4 days in the refrigerator?)
Jenni
Made this for Christmas dinner and it was perfect. Had a 9.5lb roast with about 16 ribs. Put the rub on 24 hours before cooking. The upside method was great. I used a vertical roaster that I usually for chicken and it held it in place easily. Based on other notes, I started checking temp after an hour at 350 because dry pork is the worst! Even with the bigger roast, it hit 145 after 1hr20min at 350. Rested for 10 min and every price was perfectly moist and delicious.
SCY
Not enough flavor for the amount of work
Isabelle
This was delicious! Will make again!
Mary
This was fantastic and super easy. Put rub on, put in a brine bag, and let sit for two days in an iced cooler. Cooked upside down and for about the time called for in the recipe (it may have not been full room temp when I put it in). Came out perfect. Served with cranberry sauce. I have made much more labor intensive crown roasts (brined, bacon wrapped, stuffed) and this was just as good if not better. Will make again next Christmas.
Amy
I'd love to hear what everyone served with this. Did you make a gravy, etc.?
Mary
We served with cranberry sauce and turkey gravy I had in freezer from Thanksgiving. I don't think it needed either but the cranberry sauce was a nice zing.
RJ
Do you end up with any pan drippings for a sauce?
Jodie
Lots of pan drippings on mine--added white wine, butter and flour--very nice addition at the table.
Ryan
Needs to be brined. Added rub a day in advance and flavor only penetrated the outside of the pork so the center had no flavor. With that said, the flavor from the rub it did have was awesome.Also, will double down on previous comment - this finished earlier than noted so check it towards the end.
Brandon
This turned out great and was so impressive for Christmas dinner! My only advice is to check the temperature frequently — mine was done before I expected.
Monique
I've wanted to make a crown roast for years and this recipe made it worth the wait. The roast was moist, beautifully seasoned and quite easy to prepare. We'd make this again in a heartbeat and it was terrific as written.
Lorac
Delicious but my timing was way different. 8 lb frenched roast (8 ribs) took 1:20 to reach 145 degrees in 350 oven (constant temp). Next time I’ll go for 140 degrees.
Conner
I used a 16 rib 12 lb. crown roast and assumed that the cooking time would be longer. However, after turning the oven down from 450, I only roasted it another 1.5 hours when the temp reached 145. The meat was super flavorful and juicy! Definitely be sure to check the temp often because I would’ve hated to see this overcooked.
kate m
145 degrees seem to be very well done - did Jesse and Jane roast it to that temperature? Thanks!
stone
Cooked 4 rib roast for 1 hour @450.Used herbs de Provence with garlic.Salt pepper and olive oil. Delicious.11.14.18Did not marinate.
Jude
I assume 1 rib per person? Did you roast to 145 and let sit, and if so was it still mildly pink?
Jane
I love this recipe! It is perfectly tasty & showstoppingly beautiful. It's going to be a holiday tradition at our house.
I dry aged the roast in the fridge for 2-3 days prior to cooking. This seems to seal in all the juices. I also added a smidge of Dijon to the rub (in hopes good "stick-to-itiveness"{it worked}).
This is a delicious, fun, & beautiful presentation holiday roast centerpiece! Can hardly wait til next time.
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