Preparing a crown roast

Preparing a Crown Roast

A crown roast usually serves 12 -14 people (at least) so it’s a great choice for an elegant dinner party. It’s actually a rib roast or rack of pork, that has been "frenched" (meat scraped away to reveal the bone tips) and tied in a round "crown" shape. You will likely need to order your crown roast from a butcher or grocery store's meat department in advance (but they may be on hand during the holiday season).

A handy guide is to count the bones on the Crown Roast, each will give a large serving of pork when sliced, and is an easy way to figure out how many people your Crown Roast will serve.

1. Preheat oven to 325°F (160°C).
2. Place the crown roast in a large roasting pan.
3. Pat dry with a paper towel and season with salt and pepper.
4. Cover each bone tip with a piece of aluminum foil.
5. Place a ball of aluminum foil in the cavity.
6. Roast as follows (generally 10-15 minutes per pound/500g)

Small Roasts - under 7 lbs/3 kg:  Roast uncovered for ½ - 1 hour. Remove from oven. Drain off any excess fat. Remove foil ball. Fill cavity with your favourite stuffing. Cover with foil to prevent drying. Roast for another 1 ½ hours or until meat thermometer reaches 155°F - 160°F (68°C - 71°C).

Medium Roasts - 7-9 lbs/3-4 kg:  Roast uncovered for 1 ½ hours. Remove from oven. Drain off any excess fat. Remove foil ball. Fill cavity with your favourite stuffing. Cover with foil to prevent drying. Roast for another 1 ½ hours or until meat thermometer reaches 155°F - 160°F (68°C - 71°C).

Large Roasts - over 10 lbs/4.5 kg:  Roast uncovered for 2 -2 ½ hours. Remove from oven. Drain off any excess fat. Remove foil ball. Fill cavity with your favourite stuffing. Cover with foil to prevent drying. Roast for another 1 ½ hours or until meat thermometer reaches 155°F - 160°F (68°C - 71°C).

A crown roast can be cooked on the BBQ grill as well.

Thank you to “Put Pork on Your Fork” for all the information.