Stuffed Pork Loin

History

Stuffed Pork Loin (Solomillo de cerdo relleno) is a recipe printed in La Mejor Cocinera, Recetas de Cocina, an anonymous Spanish household cookery manual issued in Madrid by Editorial Saturnino Calleja in the early 20th century. The book is a general home-cooking manual — its sections run from broths, soups and vegetables through meats, pork dishes and stuffed dishes to table service and household cleaning advice — and a copy is catalogued by the Biblioteca Nacional de España, whose record shows an edition dated 1921, with later Madrid Calleja printings (a firmly located hardcover edition is dated 1923). The recipe appears twice in the book in nearly identical form — once in the "Rellenos" (stuffed dishes) chapter and again in the pork-cookery section. As printed, the loin is opened and, once well tenderized, spread flat; it is filled with strips of jamón, leek, onion and hard-boiled egg, rolled into a log, tied, and seasoned with salt and lemon juice. It is set in a besuguera (fish kettle), coated with hot manteca (lard) and browned, then finely chopped onion is added and it is cooked about two hours; it is sliced without losing its shape and the sauce is strained. Beyond its appearance in this cookbook, the historical record I consulted does not document a specific origin, inventor, date of first appearance, or social meaning for this preparation.

Ingredients

• 1 whole pork loin (solomillo)
• jamón (cured ham)
• leek (puerro)
• onion (cebolla)
• hard-boiled eggs
• as needed salt
• as needed lemon juice (zumo de limón)
• as needed manteca (lard)
• 1 medium onion (cebolla)

Instructions

1. Open the pork loin lengthwise and tenderize it well, then lay it flat. Fill it with strips of jamón (cured ham), leek, onion, and hard-boiled eggs. Roll it into a log, tie it securely, and sprinkle with salt and lemon juice.
2. Place the roll in a fish kettle (besuguera) and brown it thoroughly, coating well with manteca (lard). Add the very finely chopped onion and let it cook for about two hours.
3. When ready to serve, slice it without allowing it to lose its shape, and strain the cooking sauce.