One co-worker mentioned that her husband slow cooked pork in milk and it was wonderful. The only problem is she knew none of the details, she couldn't tell me the cut, the method, how long to cook it for, the seasonings, nothing. So after a frustrating attempt to find it in a cookbook or online (this was before the explosion of food blogs and other recipe sites online) I stopped thinking about it for several years. Then I purchased, All About Braising: The Art of Uncomplicated Cooking by Molly Stevens and found her recipe for "Pork Loin Braised in Milk." Since then I have made this dish several times and it is always well received by my family, even the times it was a little overdone. I often accompany it with mashed potatoes and creamy red cabbage with fennel and mustard seeds. The flavors really balance and compliment each other well.

Several years ago I decided I was not guying to buy meat from contained animal feeding operations with 2 consequences for this recipe.  The first one is I don't make it as often, as locally raised pork is expensive at the store and I am not ready to buy a whole pig. In addition I have had to tweek the cooking method back to Molly's original instructions. When cooking supermarket pork the 275° was too high and it would get a little dried out so I lowered the temperature to 225° with wonderful results. However heritage pork is well marbled, not shot up with saline, and not only can withstand the higher temperature, it needs it. I have altered the seasonings she calls for slightly by adding in a personal favorite, thyme, and combining the seasonings from two versions. Pork Loin Braised in Milk adapted from All About Braising: The Art of Uncomplicated Cooking by Molly Stevens One 2 1/2 to 3 pound boneless pork blade or loin roast 4 garlic cloves peeled 1/2 Tbsp chopped fresh sage 1/4 tsp fresh thyme 1/2 tsp fennel seeds, lightly crushed 1 tsp dried lemon peel (or use 1 1/2 Tbsp freshly grated) 1 tsp kosher Salt 1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper 3 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil (divided use) 1 Tbsp unsalted butter 1 1/4 cup whole milk Two 2 1/2 by 3/4 inch strips lemon zest, small sage sprig or 1 large leaf and 1 bay leaf tied into a bundle or placed in a tea ball 1/2 lemon Season the pork up to 12 hours ahead: Trim excess fat although leave some and tie up with kitchen string or use Cooking Rubber Bands Mince 3 of the garlic cloves, smash the fourth and set it aside. Mix garlic, fennel, sage, thyme, lemon peel, salt, pepper and 1 Tbsp olive oil and mix well. Rub seasoning mix over the pork and allow to rest in the fridge overnight or until ready to cook. Heat oven to 275° (if using supermarket pork heat the oven to 225°). Choose a heavy dutch oven that will hold the pork without too much extra space, I used a 3.5 qt Le Creuset. Add the oil and butter and heat over medium high. When the butter stops foaming add the pork and brown well, 12 - 16 minutes total. If the butter starts to burn lower the heat. Pour off all but 1 to 2 Tbsp fat and return the pot to medium high heat and add the smashed garlic clove. Stir until fragrant, about 40 seconds. gradually pour in the milk being careful not to let it foam up and spill over. Bring to a boil, lower to a simmer and scrape the bottom to loosen any browned bits. Return the pork to the pot, along with any juices on the plate. Cover with the lid and place in the lower third of preheated oven. After 10 to 15 minutes lift the lid to check that the liquid is not boiling too vigorously. If it is lower temp 10 to 15 degrees. After 45 minutes turn the pork with tongs. the milk will have separated and taken on an ivory color. set the lid slightly ajar so the milk can begin to reduce. Continue to braise at a gentle simmer, basting occasionally, for 35 to 45 minutes more, until the pork reaches 150 degrees internally. Transfer to a carving board that has a channel to catch the juices and cover loosely with foil. While the meat rests use a spoon to remove most of the clear fat on top of the curdled milk sauce. Don't remove all the fat. Turn the heat to high and boil the sauce to reduce and concentrate the flavors. Stir, scraping up any bits stuck to the sides and bottom of the pan. If the liquid is watery you may have to boil for 10 to 12 minutes. When the sauce is ready it will be a light caramel color and resemble a loose broken curd. If, however, after only a few minutes there is very little liquid and mostly curds stir in a few Tbsp cold water and return to a simmer. Taste for salt and pepper and add 1 or 2 drops lemon juice to taste. Remove the strings from the pork (or rubber bands), pour any collected juices in to the sauce and stir in. Slice about 1/4 inch thick and serve with sauce spooned on top. Variation: Milk Braised sauce with a creamy finish The recipe states that you can put the sauce in the blender with a few drops of heavy cream and whir until smooth. The first time I made this dish I decided that was a good idea because the sauce is not very attractive, however while I am not a lazy cook I am lazy about cleaning up. So to prevent having to wash the parts of the blender I decided to use my immersion blender. So I added the half and half I had at the time in the fridge and proceed to blend the sauce in the pot with my immersion blender. There was too little sauce for the blender and the sauce spattered out of the pan all over the kitchen windows, walls, stove, ceiling etc, and did not blend. So much for saving on cleaning. I served the remaining sauce as is. The little bit of half and half made the sauce better and so I remembered to add that again next time. This time to blend the sauce I poured it into a quart size canning jar and used my immersion blender.