Hasselback Pork Fillet with Apple, Sage and Bacon

, from Issue #63. November, 2015
Photography by Aaron McLean.
Hasselback Pork Fillet with Apple, Sage and Bacon

Traditionally made using potatoes, this recipe takes pork fillets and fills them to bursting with bacon, apple and sage then roasts them until tender and juicy.

Serves: 4

INGREDIENTS

2 pork fillets (about 350 grams each)
8 rashers streaky bacon
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 Braeburn apple, halved, cored and thinly sliced
handful sage leaves
3 tablespoons olive oil
3 tablespoons white wine
Parmesan for grating
sea salt and ground pepper

2 x 20cm long thin wooden skewers

METHOD

Preheat the oven to 180°C fan bake.

Make 6-8 evenly spaced cuts along each pork fillet, cutting only ¾ of the way through the fillet. Season with salt and pepper.

Chop the bacon finely and combine with the garlic.

Pull each cut apart and insert 2 slices of apple, some bacon and 2 sage leaves. When they are all filled, push a skewer through the pork fillet lengthways to hold everything together. 

Place in a lined shallow baking dish and drizzle over the olive oil and the wine.

Top with a generous grating of Parmesan and a grind of pepper. 

Roast for about 30 minutes until golden and just cooked through. Rest for 5 minutes then remove the skewers and slice.

Serve with Zucchini Pickle and Potato Salad.