Slow-Cooked Pork Shoulder with Apple

Ingredients

• 500 g (1 lb 2 oz) boneless pork shoulder, skin and hard fat removed
• 2 eating apples (~250 g), peeled and cored — chop 1 1/2 of them roughly for the sauce and dice the remaining half into 1 cm pieces, to go in near the end so they stay as soft, recognisable pieces
• 1 small onion (~80 g), finely diced
• 200 ml (3/4 cup) no-salt-added stock or water (check the label for hidden salt and celery)
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1/4 tsp ground fennel seed
• 1 bay leaf (removed and discarded before serving)

Method

1. 1. Preheat the oven to 140°C (285°F).
2. 2. Rub the pork with the ground fennel. Heat the oil in an ovenproof pot and brown the pork lightly on all sides, about 5 minutes.
3. 3. Tuck the onion, the roughly chopped apple and the bay leaf around the meat and pour in the no-salt-added stock.
4. 4. Cover with a lid (or a tight double layer of foil) and cook for 3 hours.
5. 5. Stir in the reserved 1 cm apple dice and cook a further 30-60 minutes (3 hours 30 minutes to 4 hours in total), until the pork is completely yielding, the roughly chopped apple has collapsed into the juices, and the diced apple is spoon-soft but still in recognisable pieces.
6. 6. Remove the bay leaf and discard it — never serve it to a baby.
7. 7. Rest the pork 10 minutes. If you are feeding a 6-8 month old, cut one thick section ACROSS the grain into soft finger-length planks BEFORE you pull the rest apart. Discard any remaining firm fat or gristle you find.
8. 8. Spoon out the 1 cm apple dice and set them aside so they stay whole, then mash the collapsed apple and onion into the pan juices to make a loose sauce and toss it through the pulled pork so nothing is dry and no slippery whole onion pieces remain.
9. 9. Cool to lukewarm, squash-test every piece — pork and apple dice alike — between thumb and forefinger, and serve. Refrigerate leftovers within 2 hours, use within 2 days or freeze for up to 1 month.