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1
Preparing the pork, 2-3 days in advance
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2
Find natural seams in pork shoulder. You want one that runs the length of the meat, if available. Use a knife to separate the meat along the seam. If you find other seams along that seam, separate those as well. Be careful not to cut the meat into two pieces while separating the seams. Generously salt the pork all over, including on the seams that you just separated. Use 1/2-1 tsp per pound of meat. Coarse salt works better for salting meat. I typically use kosher salt, but sea salt also works.
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3
Combine capers, lemon zest, garlic, sage, rosemary, 2 tsp fennel, 1-1/2 tsp black pepper. Spread this over the seams that you just opened. Fold the meat back together and tie tightly with cooking string. You will probably need 4-5 pieces of string. Rub the remaining fennel and pepper on the outside of the roast. Reserve and refrigerate any herbs that fell out in the tying process. Cover the pork loosely and refrigerate. Now you are done for 2-3 days!
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4
Roasting
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5
Preheat the oven to 350F. Toss vegetable chunks in olive oil and a little salt. Heat a 12-14 inch ovenproof skillet (we use our cast iron pan) over medium heat. Place the pork in the pan and surround with the vegetables. Place in the oven. After 1 hour, turn the roast over and stir the vegetables. Turn the roast back over after 2 hours, add 1/3 cup chicken stock and reserved herbs to the skillet, and stir the vegetables. Roast until the internal temperature reaches 185F, about another 15-30 minutes. Transfer meat to a platter and tent with foil while you make the pan sauce. Transfer vegetables to a warm bowl and cover.
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6
Pan sauce
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7
Remove any fat visible on the surface. Add the vermouth and 1/3 cup stock and heat over low. Scrape pan drippings from bottom of skillet and bring to a simmer.
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8
To serve, slice the pork, and serve with vegetables and a couple spoonfuls of the pan sauce.
