Pork Tenderloin with Apples & Pears
Submitted by admin on Sat, 08/13/2011 - 12:58
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Pork is one of the few meats that I buy from the store these days. If there were any wild hogs around here, I’d likely never buy pork… but there isn’t. And, I love pork! This recipe would easily work with wild boar and if you’ve never eaten it, try it. It is excellent.
Ingredients
1 pork tenderloin
1 apple – Note: Both Granny Smiths & Golden Delicious have great flavour and hold up well, but you could use any kind of apple provided it’s not too soft
1 firm pear – Note: Bosc pears are great, but use any firm pear.
3 tbsp butter
3 tbsp brown sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp lemon juice
Splash of dark rum
1/2 tsp salt
Okay, let’s rock this piece of pig!
Season pork on all sides with salt and pepper.
On medium high heat, in a cast iron pan if you have one, sear the outsides of the pork in canola oil or corn oil. Turn a few times so the entire outside is caramelized and nicely browned. This should only take a few minutes, tops.
Finish in the oven at 350 F for about 12 – 13 minutes. This will depend on how long you pan fry it for and it will also depend on the thickness of the pork tenderloin. Use a thermometer if you’re unsure, just don’t overcook it. Don’t afraid to serve pork medium. The days of cooking the living shit out of pork are over. A little pink is fine.
Slice up the apple and pear, but leave it fairly chunky. Sautee over medium heat in the butter. Add brown sugar, cinnamon and a pinch of salt.
After a few minutes, add the lemon juice. Then, add a splash of dark or amber rum and flambé until the alcohol is burned off. Shouldn’t take more than a minute or so…
Note – if you’ve never flambéed before, it’s easy. Pour the rum into the centre of the pan and then tilt it so the rum touches the sides of the pan. This should ignite the alcohol. If it doesn’t, you can try shaking the pan a little bit and if that doesn’t work - grab a long necked lighter and light it manually.
You may need to finish the sauce with a little more butter. You don’t want it to be too dry.
When you remove the meat from the oven, let it rest for at least five minutes. Then, cut the pork and serve with apples and pears over top.
One pork tenderloin will serve 2 people… unless they’re pigs, like me! I ate the whole damn thing this evening when I made it!!
Pound ‘er Down!
