Provencale Roast Pork Loin
Rustic Mountain Food

Thick Slices of Tender Juicy Roast Pork Loin
A tasty Herby Garlic Crust. Aromatic Sweet and Savory Fruit Sauce.

Pam and I discovered this dish as we drove down to St.Tropez after a wine tasting trip to the Rhone Valley.

The smells and tastes of this Magic recipe have stayed with us ever since.


We stopped to eat in Ramatueille, a walled mountain Village just 5 or 6 miles above the cosmopolitan resort St.Tropez, playground of the rich and Famous.
This chance stop rewarded us with one of the most memorable meals we had had in years.

The pork was roasted in a wood burning oven, fed by off-cuts of the local Grape Vines.

That warm, balmy evening we relaxed after our long drive - eating the Fabulous pork and drinking chilled glasses of Cote de Provence Rose.

Ingredients for Four People

• A lean piece of Pork Loin, about 2 lb.
• Two Cloves of Garlic, finely chopped
• One Teaspoon each of dried Thyme, Marjoram and Sage
• Two Ounces of good Bacon Fat or Butter will do
• Salt and Black Pepper


For the Sauce


• Three Ounces of Good quality Sultanas
• One Tablespoon of Balsamic Vinegar
• Twelve Small Button Mushrooms
• Three Ounces of Brandy
• One Cup of good Chicken Stock
• One Teaspoon of Corn Starch (Cornflour)

Roast Pork Loin Method

1. OK - Make sure your Pork Loin is well trimmed of any fat or Gristle
2. With a sharp knife Make a series of diagonal cuts along the top of the meat, about 1/2 an inch apart and 1/4 inch deep - now repeat the cuts diagonaly the other way. You will end up with diamond shaped cuts all over
3. Now turn the meat over and do the same on the other side
4. Rub the Bacon fat or butter all over the meat - making sure to rub it well in
5. Now roll the loin in the dried herbs and Garlic - sprinkle with Salt and Grind plenty of Black Pepper all over
6. In a heavy pan or Skillet Brown the meat all over for about Ten Minutes and then transfer to a preheated oven at 280º for Twenty Minutes - then remove from the oven and let it rest for 5 - 10 minutes
7. Meanwhile make the sauce - it's really easy
8. Put all the ingredients except the Corn starch into a Pan and boil to remove any remaining alcohol from the Brandy. Slake the Corn Starch in a little cold water and add it - bit by bit - to the sauce - until you achieve the desired consistency
9. Spoon equal amounts of sauce onto four warm dinner plates and arrange 2/3 slices of the Pork on top