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Dublin Pork Spareribs With Apples

In country households until the turn of the nineteenth century or even later, the pig was 'the gentleman that pays the rent' and was a very prized possession. He met his end in the autumn when the main part of the pork would have been pickled or turned into hams to see the family through the winter, but a few dishes for fresh pork survive and this is one of them.

Steps

Tie parsley , thyme and bay leaf in a bunch.
Cut the outside fat and rind from the sparerib chops and cut them into thin strips.
Peel , core and slice the apples thinly and cut the onions into thin slices.
Season the chops with salt and pepper.
Butter a wide casserole dish , put in a layer of apple slices , sprinkle them with half the sugar and spread half the onions over the top.
Season with salt and pepper and place the chops on top.
Place the bunch of herbs in the centre.
Cover with more onions , more apples and the remaining sugar.
Place the pieces of reserved pork fat criss-crossed in a lattice over the top , pour in the cider , cover the pot and bake at 180c / 350f / gas mark 4 for for 1 hour.
Lower the heat to 150c / 300f / gas mark 2 and cook for a further hour.
Skim off the excess fat from the top and turn up the heat to 220c / 425f / gas mark 7 to crisp the crackling and lightly brown the apples to a pale gold colour.

Ingredients

pork chops, cooking apples, onions, salt, fresh ground pepper, brown sugar, parsley, thyme, bay leaf, cider