Holiday Stuffed Pork Roast

This is the kind of pork roast that takes over the table at Christmas dinner. A boneless pork loin gets butterflied, packed with a savory-sweet stuffing of brown rice, toasted almonds, scallions, celery, orange zest, and crystallized ginger, then tied back together and roasted with a sticky cranberry-orange glaze. Each slice shows a rosy ring of pork around a glowing pinwheel of stuffing. Looks complicated, isn’t.

The stuffing is the smart move. Toasting the almonds in butter at the start develops their oils, and the orange zest plus crystallized ginger give the rice a fragrant warmth that complements pork beautifully without overpowering. The cranberry sauce glaze does double duty: brushed over the roast in the final fifteen minutes, it caramelizes into a glossy crust, and the rest gets simmered down with orange segments to spoon over each slice. Roast slow and even, and let it rest before slicing so the juices stay in the meat.

Pro Tips

• Buy a center-cut pork loin and butterfly it yourself, or ask the butcher to do it. Butterflying gives you a flat surface to spread stuffing without splitting the roast.
• Tie the roast snugly at 2 to 3 inch intervals with kitchen twine. Loose ties let the stuffing escape during roasting.
• Use an instant-read thermometer in the meat (not the stuffing) and pull at 145°F (63°C) for tender, slightly pink pork. Carryover heat will bring it to 150°F (66°C).
• Let the roast rest 10 to 15 minutes before slicing. Cutting too soon dumps juices and dries the meat.

Variations

• Swap brown rice for wild rice or a wild rice blend for a more festive holiday stuffing.
• Add dried cranberries or chopped dried apricots to the rice for extra sweetness.
• Use cherry preserves or fig jam instead of cranberry sauce for the glaze.