Personally I like to stuff the bird, whether it is a Roast Chicken for a Sunday Roast or a Turkey for Christmas Day, the stuffing keeps the meat soft and moist. But I know that a lot of people do prefer to cook the stuffing separately. If I am cooking my stuffing separately then I like to make it in a tin, like this Apple, Sage and Pistachio Pork Stuffing but it is also nice to serve them as little balls and scatter them alongside the carved up turkey. That way everyone can get a scoop of delicious stuffing to go with the main meat of the feast. It also makes your meat platter look delicious and adds a little colour!
This Cranberry and Orange Pork Stuffing is festively delicious! The sweet orange and the tartness of the cranberry gives a lovely blend to your Christmas dinner. For me Christmas is the one dinner of the year that you can really go all out on the side dishes. Without sounding like too much of a hipster, I actually find turkey a little bland and boring and can really understand why more of us are opting for goose or duck on Christmas Day, or even splashing out on a nice joint of beef! But when it comes to Christmas I am also a bit of a traditionalist and couldn’t really steer myself away from having a turkey. That being said, I do feel it is important to spruce up those sides a bit, add a little extra texture and ingredients to create much more flavour.
- 500g mince pork
- 150g cranberries
- zest of half a orange, juice of half.
- Small bunch fresh sage (roughly chopped)
- 50g dried breadcrumbs
- 1 small onion (finely chopped)
- 2 cloves garlic (peeled and crushed)
- Butter
- Salt/ pepper
- Preheat the oven to gas 6, 200ºC, fan 180ºC.
- In a small saucepan gently heat the butter. Add the onions and garlic and cook on a gentle heat for around 7 mins. Until soft and golden. Leave to cool.
- In a mixing bowl add all the ingredients. Tip in the onions and season with some salt and pepper, and using your hands roll into small balls. About 1 and half tbsp size.
- Add the balls to a roasting tin and roast for around 40 mins, turning them over halfway through. Serve right away.
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