Cook the Book: Clay-Pot Ginger Pork with Figs and Pickled Fennel

Ingredients

• 0.5 cup carrot juice 
• 10  figs dried roughly chopped (such as Mission figs)
• 1 tablespoon olive oil extra virgin minced
• 3 cups fennel bulb sliced
• 1 cup ginger fresh minced peeled
• 8 servings kosher salt 
• 2 tablespoons orange-flower water 
• 8 servings pepper black freshly ground
• 2 pounds boston butt pork shoulder cut into 1-inch cubes (also called pork shoulder)
• 1 cup rice vinegar 
• 1 tablespoon butter unsalted

Equipment

• bowl
• oven
• pot
• blender
• wooden spoon
• spatula

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Melt the butter with the olive oil in a large clay pot over medium-high heat.
2. Add the onion and ginger; cook until the onion softens, about 5 minutes.
3. Add the pork, salt, and pepper; stir, and cook for 10 minutes more.
4. Add the plum wine and figs, bring to a boil, mix thoroughly, cover, and roast for 1 1/2 hours.
5. Remove from the oven and, using a wooden spoon or a spatula, break apart the pork chunks a bit.
6. Add the carrot juice; return to oven for 30 minutes more. Taste and adjust the salt.
7. Serve from the clay pot or transfer to warm individual plates; garnish with a mound of pickled fennel.
8. Ume-Pickled Fennel
9. - makes 3 cups fennel and 2 cups pickling liquid -
10. Combine the wine, pickled plums, vinegar, and honey in a blender; purée.
11. Place the fennel slices in a large bowl, pour in the liquid, and cover tightly. You can eat it right away, but the flavors only get better after a few days in the fridge. Keeps for several months.