Harissa-Rubbed Pork Shoulder with White Beans and Chard

Sometimes the magic works, sometimes it doesn't. This recipe for Harissa-Rubbed Pork Shoulder with White Beans and Chard looked so good, but in reality we were disappointed, never to appear on the blog again!

Harissa-Rubbed Pork Shoulder with White Beans and Chard

Nothing Fancy

Alison Roman

4          pounds boneless pork shoulder

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

½         cup harissa paste
¼  cup distilled white vinegar

3          tablespoons tomato paste

3          tablespoons light brown sugar

4          garlic cloves, finely grated

1-1/2   cups water

2          (15-ounce) cans small white beans, such as cannellini or great northern, drained and rinsed

1          large bunch chard, stems removed, leaves torn into bite-sized pieces

1          preserved lemon, seeds removed, thinly sliced

1          cup cilantro, tender leaves and stems

1          lemon, halved

NOTE: Pork shoulder is available at basically every grocery store and impossibly delicious no matter what you
do to it It is almost always my go-to “I want to, have people over and have what to cook” meat, especially useful for when you're not sure how many people are coming or what they like to eat, because (a) it miraculously always feeds the exact number of people you need it to, (b) it's impossible to mess up, and (c) everybody loves pork shoulder.

There is no pre-sear or any other preliminary steps here before slathering the pork with a garlicky harissa paste and popping it into an oven, which makes it especially foolproof, even if cooking large pieces of meat usually freaks you out. You could certainly stop after you've braised the shoulder, serving the spicy, tangy pan juices over roasted potatoes or a fluffy pile of couscous, but I love adding the beans and returning them to a significantly hotter oven to absorb the crazy flavorful pork fat, getting a little browned and crisped as the pork also browns and crisps and, yes, this is a cute little play on "pork and beans"—thanks for noticing!

1.              Preheat the oven to 325°F.

2.              Season the pork with salt and pepper and place in a large Dutch oven. Combine the harissa paste, vinegar, tomato paste, brown sugar, and garlic in a medium bowl. Smear the harissa mixture all over pork, getting into all nooks and crannies, and add the water. Place the lid on the pot and roast, until the pork is nearly falling-apart tender, 3 to 3-1/2 hours.

3.              Remove the lid, add the beans, and season with salt and pepper. Increase the oven temperature to 425°F and return the pot to the oven, uncovered. Roast until the beans have soaked up all the liquid and the top of the pork is deeply golden brown, 40 to 45 minutes.

4.              Transfer the pork to a cutting board. Add the chard and preserved lemon to the beans and stir to wilt the leaves. Slice pork into 1/2-inch-thick slices (if it starts to shred, that’s fine). Transfer the beans and greens to a large serving plate or shallow bowl and place the pork on top (alternatively, place pork on top of the beans in the pot and serve directly from there). Scatter with cilantro and serve the lemon alongside for squeezing over.

DO AHEAD This can be made up to 3 days ahead, sans chard, stored in its pot, and refrigerated. Reheat before adding chard.

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