Best for: A Sunday roast with eight centuries of endorsement — and a headline for low-and-slow purists.
The record says this one plainly, because the man who wrote it down knew the man who ate it. Einhard, Charlemagne’s courtier and biographer, recorded that the emperor’s huntsmen brought the roast in on the spit and that Charlemagne was fonder of that roast than of any other dish — and that late in life, when his doctors ordered him to give up roasted meat for boiled, he refused them and kept eating his roasts. An emperor who conquered most of Europe would not surrender the spit to a physician.
Our grilled take is a rotisserie pork roast with a mustard-and-herb crust, turned slowly the way his huntsmen’s spits turned — with an indirect-grill method for anyone without a rotisserie.
Grill: Rotisserie over indirect medium heat (about 350°F), or indirect with turning. Equipment: Rotisserie spit or grill set for indirect cooking, butcher’s twine, instant-read thermometer. Course: Main dish.
Ingredients
30 minutes Rest: 15 minutes Total: 2 hours
The roast
- 1 boneless pork loin roast, about 3 pounds
- 1 tablespoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
The mustard-herb crust
- 3 tablespoons Dijon mustard
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 3 garlic cloves, minced to a paste
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme
- 1 teaspoon honey
Directions
Season the roast. Rub the pork all over with the salt and pepper. Stir the mustard, olive oil, garlic, rosemary, thyme, and honey into a paste and coat the roast on every side.
Truss and mount the spit. Tie the roast at 1-inch intervals so it holds a tight, even cylinder, thread it onto the spit, and secure the forks. No rotisserie? Set the roast on the indirect side of the grill and plan to turn it a quarter turn every 15 minutes — the old way, done by hand.
Roast it slow and even. Cook over indirect medium heat, about 350°F, turning steadily, until the crust is deep golden and the center reaches 140°F, about 1 hour 30 minutes.
Rest like you mean it. Rest the roast, tented, a full 15 minutes — the temperature will coast to 145°F and the juices will stay in the meat instead of on the board.
Slice thick. Carve into slices a good half-inch thick, so each one carries its ring of mustard-herb crust.
Serve it plain and proud. Serve with the pan juices spooned over and nothing fussy alongside — roasted roots or plain boiled potatoes play the supporting role the doctors would have wanted.
Grilling tip: A rotisserie roast cooks from the outside in at an even pace, so pull it at 140°F without fear — the rest carries it to a rosy, juicy 145°F all the way through.
