Pork Rillette with cardamom, roasted persimmon, and soy caramel

Serves 8-10 | Prep 30 min. | Cook time 3-4 hours
This dish goes perfectly with our "Darwin" Proprietary Red

INGREDIENTS:

RILLETTE 
1½ lb. pork shoulder, or butt, diced into 1 in. cubes
1 lb. boneless pork spareribs, diced into 1 in. cubes
1 lb. pork fat, diced, (may substitute with duck fat)
¼ c.  water
1 t. ground cardamom
Salt and pepper to taste

ROASTED PERSIMMON 
2 ea. hachiya persimmon, peeled and quartered

SOY CARAMEL 
1 T. olive oil
¼ C.  soy sauce
1 T.  sugar
1 T.  water

DIRECTIONS:  

1. In a dutch oven, add pork fat and water. Top with diced pork shoulder and ribs.  Turn heat to medium-high and bring to a boil.  Turn heat to medium low and cover.

2.  RILLETTE: Slowly simmer pork for 3-4 hours or until meat is falling apart and fat is no longer cloudy. The mixture should come together, but if there is a lot of excess fat, strain of the fat before placing in jars. Stir in salt, and pepper to taste. And stir in cardamom. Place pork in sterilized jars and top with remainder of pork fat.

3. ROASTED PERSIMMONS: Toss persimmons in olive oil and slowly roast in a 325° oven until slightly caramelized and much of the moisture is removed from persimmon, approximately 45 minutes. Transfer to a blender and puree until smooth.

4. SOY CARAMEL: Bring 1 T. sugar and 1 T. water to a boil.  Turn heat to medium and allow syrup to caramelize.  Add soy sauce and reduce until a syrup like consistency is made.  

5. TO SERVE: Spread pork rillette on a crostini, top with roasted persimmon and drizzle with soy caramel..