Are you like me and celebrate your birthday “month”? Yep, it’s not until Sept. 28th for me, but I wanted to spend this month cooking healthy, hearty and delicious meals. Of course there’s always a little room for something sweet now and then, but I really want to provide my hungry family nutritious meals and help myself meet my post baby goals, it’s been just over a year and I’m ready to get fit. One of the simplest ways to do that is to prepare a super lean pork tenderloin with pears and shallots. Fall here we come! How about we get roasting?
This recipe is all about taking whole food ingredients and applying essential techniques to add flavor and texture. A quick mince of fresh garlic and thyme infused with olive oil, salt, pepper serves as a nice earthy marinade for the pork. The tenderloin really doesn’t need a heavy marinade to make it flavorful, just keep it simple friends.
The key to a tender, moist and juicy piece of pork tenderloin is using two techniques, pan searing and oven roasting. I always sear the outside of the pork first for a few minutes on each side to create a golden brown crust and to give a contrast of texture. You don’t want to cook the loin too much in the pan because it will become dry and tough.
To cook the tenderloin through to the center, roast the whole loin for about 10 minutes in a very hot 475°F oven. To infuse more aromatics, I roast the loin on a few sprigs of fresh rosemary, this subtle touch makes such a difference in the flavor. Oh yeah, don’t forget to let the meat rest!
Pears, oh lovely bosc pears, have I missed you! I wasn’t ready to dive in yet, but now, it’s time. Just like the pork, the pears and shallots get a nice sear in the hot pan to caramelize each side of the wedges, those natural sugars are just screaming to be cooked! As the pork roasts, so does the pears, in they go, easy peasy.
Whoa, let’s talk about this saaaauuuuccceee. If I remember one main pet peeve of my culinary instructors, its bringing up a nice piece of meat without a flavorful luxurious sauce. Dry meat is a big no no, don’t even go there peeps.
The easiest way to do this is to take advantage of those beautiful pan drippings and golden browned bits that get formed in the pan as you sear the pork, pears and shallots. Don’t throw away that flavor, make a pan sauce. The secret ingredient, pear nectar. If you can’t find the Kern’s pear flavor, use the peach, tastes just as yummy. You’re going to want to pour this over everything, I did, I still wanted more!
I’ve been making this recipe often during the weekdays, switching up the sides like citrus green beans or brussels sprouts to keep things interesting. Once you get the pork cooking technique down, it will be your go to fancy meal, guaranteed to impress your family or guests!
TIP: How do you determine when the pork tenderloin is finished roasting?
One tool that I recommend for all home cooks is a digital instant-read thermometer. This is the best way to help you predict the doneness of various meats using temperature. For the pork tenderloin, I like to serve it medium. It is best to stop roasting the pork between 140-145°F, then let it rest for 10 to 15 minutes. This allows for carryover cooking to reach the center of the food, which will be about 145-150°F final serving temperature. What you get is a faint pink center and tender juicy slices of tenderloin, delicious!
One tool that I recommend for all home cooks is a digital instant-read thermometer. This is the best way to help you predict the doneness of various meats using temperature. For the pork tenderloin, I like to serve it medium. It is best to stop roasting the pork between 140-145°F, then let it rest for 10 to 15 minutes. This allows for carryover cooking to reach the center of the food, which will be about 145-150°F final serving temperature. What you get is a faint pink center and tender juicy slices of tenderloin, delicious!
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