While meat and fruit might not seem like the most natural pairing, it’s a combination that transcends cultures. Plums make for a particularly good base ingredient, with a range of uses beyond being a satisfying stand-alone snack. Even without cooking them, plums can add vibrant flavor to chicken salad and serve as an unusual but delicious complement to scallop ceviche. One specific pairing that deserves more space in your culinary mind is pork and plum, according to Scott Baptie, Sunday Times bestselling recipe book author.
“Plums can take a pork dish to the next level by adding a natural sweetness and a touch of acidity,” Baptie says. “This cuts through the richness of the meat. Their tartness helps balance the fat, keeping it from feeling too heavy, while also deepening the overall flavor of the dish.”
The rich fattiness of pork also breaks down the tender flesh of the fruit, with each ingredient bringing out unexpected notes in the other. This is especially true when roasting, according to Baptie. “If you roast halved plums with a bit of olive oil alongside the pork, then their juices can blend naturally with the meat,” he says. Cook them skin-side down to let the juices mingle as they bake in the oven.
Cooking with plums
When it comes to incorporating plums into your recipes, Scott Baptie has some ideas. “The best way to use plums without overpowering the pork is to incorporate them subtly — whether in a glaze, roasted alongside the meat, turned into a spiced chutney, or mixed into a stuffing with herbs,” he says. “You can make a simple glaze … by simmering plums with balsamic vinegar, honey, and a pinch of cinnamon.”
For those unfamiliar with chutney-making, Baptie recommends ginger and chili to round out the flavor profile. Cook those three ingredients with apple cider vinegar and vanilla extract until the plums soften, dissolve some sugar, and let it simmer on low for 30 minutes or until a wooden spoon dragged across the bottom of the pot leaves a clear path. Serve it with pork chops or tenderloin.
Asian cuisine makes excellent use of plums, including as a substitute for sweet bean sauce in Peking duck. Combining the fruit with hoisin, light soy sauce, ginger, and orange juice concentrate creates a flavorful plum sauce for chicken wings, which can just as easily be repurposed for pork. Add it to slow-cooked, shredded pork for an East-meets-West take on carnitas. You can also mix plum sauce with water as a finishing glaze for crispy spare ribs or combine it with hoisin, soy sauce, and garlic as a marinade for pork chops.
