Five-spice crusted pork fillet with braised cabbage and roasted shitake mushrooms

It's been seriously amazing watching The Princess fall in love with food. Having her so interested in what has - until now -  been my passion has just given us something extra that we have in common. It's awesome. The only downside is that...how do I say this nicely....well... she's kind-of-a-little-bit fussy. Average meals that I used to knock up, and secretly not be overly-impressed with, are now being called out! So when I make something and she gives it the thumbs up it actually means something because I know she can now tell the difference. This is one of those meals...

What you'll need to feed 4:

• 800g pork fillet
• 3 baby cabbages
• Two tablespoons of paprika
• Two tablespoons of five-spice-powder
• About half a glass of good-quality, aged balsamic vinegar
• A handful or two of shitake mushrooms

Okay, what to do:

1. Preheat the oven to 200 degrees celsius. In an ovenproof dish pour in some olive oil and throw in the paprika and five spice. Place the pork in the dish and rub to coat properly. Season generously with salt and pepper. Place in the oven. 

2. Meanwhile, cut the cabbage into ribbons and cook gently in a deep pan with some olive oil, salt and pepper. Add the balsamic and some water. Cook gently for about 30minutes, stirring often and adding water if necessary to prevent the cabbage from burning. Cooking it like this will give you a thick, sticky sauce and will soften the cabbage but not leave it limp. 

3. After 10 minutes, remove the pork and add the mushrooms to the dish. Give it a bit of a shake to coat the shrooms, and place back in the oven. Cook for 15 minutes more, remove and cover the meat with tinfoil. Allow to rest for 5-7 minutes. 

4. To serve, slice the meat diagonally. Spoon some cabbage into the middle of the plate and flatten it. Carefully place your pork on top and spoon over the mushrooms and some of the juices from the dish. Drizzle more juice around the plate. 

Pork is such an underrated meat. The fillet is super-lean and healthy. When cooked this way it is still moist and with the cabbage you've got an absolute winner. I think The Princess used the words "fu*king incredible" after her first bite. You probably will too. 

Cheers,

Jamie Who