Cinnamon Tomato Pork Tenderloin and Smoked Paprika Oven Fries

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Put pork on your fork!

That’s the slogan that Alberta Pork uses to incite the public to eat porcine meat and help the farmers’ crisis. Has it worked? As of late, pork producers have decided to donate their excess to the Food Bank instead of destroying their animals.

For my part, I am trying to keep up and come up with new recipes. Pork likes sweet and sour, as I found with my apple-mango, honey-nectarine and tamarind experiments. The tomato marinade I used here would be perfect for barbecued baby back ribs, but because the tenderloin is leaner than the ribs, cinnamon and cloves enhance the sweetness of the tomato in a very different manner. The dark and syrupy mushroom-infused soy sauce, which does not taste as salty as tamari sauce, adds more depth to the marinade. Instead of white vinegar, I used cider vinegar to thin the marinade which is much milder. For the calorie conscious ones, the accompanying oven fries are a must – Keep the skins on! They are rich in Vitamin C!!!

Ingredients for 2 generous (or 4 small) servings:

1 pork tenderloin (about 1 pound)

1 teaspoon black peppercorn

1 teaspoon cloves

1 stick cinnamon

1 tablespoon mushroom soy sauce

1 teaspoon kosher salt

2 bay leaves

2 tablespoons cider vinegar

1 tablespoon tomato paste

Olive oil

Salt and pepper to taste

1. Place the pork tenderloin in a sealable plastic bag or a bowl and add black peppercorn, cloves, cinnamon, soya sauce, bay leaves, tomato paste, vinegar, olive oil, salt and pepper.

2. Marinate in the fridge for 2 hrs.

3. Preheat the oven to 425 F.

4. Transfer into an oven dish and roast for 20 mins, until the internal temperature reaches 150 F.

5. Remove the tenderloin from the oven and tent with foil for 5 mins.

6. Carve the meat and serve with oven fries and green beans.

Smoked Paprika Oven Fries

Ingredients for 4 servings:

4 russet potatoes

1 heaping teaspoon smoked paprika

1 tablespoon Italian herbs

Olive oil

Salt and pepper to taste

1. Wash and slice the potatoes.

2. Preheat the oven to 425F.

3. In a large bowl, mix the potatoes with the paprika, herbs, olive oil and seasoning.

4. Spread onto a baking sheet and bake for 40 mins until golden and crisp, flipping the fries after 20 mins.

Honey-Glazed Red Peppercorn Rack of Pork with Nectarine and Cremini Mushrooms

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A rack of pork is a delicious and affordable alternative to the rack of lamb. I t is also a great way to dress your ordinary chops for Sunday dinner! As for any roast, it only is a breeze to prepare! The bones will keep the flesh from drying off, and once ready, everyone gets to enjoy their juicy pork chop! Let your oven do the work this time and keep your cook top grease-free!

Anyone who has read my previous posts should not be surprised about the sweet-savory, fruit and pork combination in this main dish. Like for the mango apple with tenderloin or the orange tamarind with slow roasted belly, the nectarine and the pork juices intermingle beautifully in this recipe. For the skeptics, you’ve just got to try and you will be hooked!

Ingredients:

3 pound (1½ kilogram) rack of pork

¼ to ½ cup honey

1 cup red peppercorn

½ teaspoon coarse salt

1 cup cremini mushrooms

2 nectarines

¼ cup dry white wine (or dry Vermouth)

Olive oil

Salt and pepper to taste

1. Preheat the oven to 450 F.

2. Mix the red peppercorn with the salt using a mortar and pestle. Completely cover the roast with red peppercorn.

3. In a small bowl, prepare the glaze by mixing honey and wine using a whisk until homogenous. Drizzle the roast with the glaze.

4. Place the roast in a baking dish, with bones underneath.

5. Cook the roast for 15 min.

6. Reduce the heat to 350 F and cook the roast for another 60 mins. (Do not open the oven door at this point!).

7. Roast until the internal temperature reaches 155 F.

8. In the last 20 mins of roasting, brush and slice the mushrooms and nectarines.

9. Remove from the oven and tent with foil for 5-10 mins.

10. Carve one chop at a time, leaving the bone on.

11. Serve with garlic mashed potatoes or with celeriac purée.

Melt in Your Mouth Slow Roasted Pork Side with Tamarind Sauce

It is always fun to go to the Chinese superstore. Everything looks so fresh and exotic that your mind always races, thinking about all of the tasty meals, and you always end up with these unusual items in your cart: pork side, shiitake mushrooms, garlic stems and tamarind!

Pork side or belly, not to be mistaken with pork side ribs, is usually cured to give you bacon. In this recipe, it is slow-roasted with one bottle of white wine to give you one of the most delicious main dishes. The slow roasting process allows the flavours of the five spice rub to seep through the meat for the sweetest and the juiciest roasts. While keeping the meat moistened, a bed of shiitake mushrooms and Clementine oranges right underneath the pork side is also slow-roasted, diffusing their citrus and earthy aromas. Yum!

Tamarind is a fruit that I used to snack on when growing up in Madagascar. A pinch of salt, hot chilli powder and you were set! It is actually one of the main ingredients in barbecue sauces, so it is most appropriate here! A very simple tamarind sauce to offset the richness of the pork.

Just perfect served with blanched green beans, fresh noodles –and glass of Symphony!


Ingredients for 4 servings:

2 pounds pork side

2 to 3 tablespoons 5-spice mix (Note: You can find it at any Chinese store or make it yourself by combining fennel seed, star anise, cinnamon, cloves, and black pepper)

½ teaspoon Kosher salt

½ teaspoon red peppercorn

Garlic stems (another find from the Chinese store)

6 Clementine oranges

1 cup shiitake mushrooms

1/2 cup cremini mushrooms

1 red pepper

1 bottle dry white wine

2 cup fresh tamarind

1 cup water

Olive oil

Salt and pepper to taste

1. Preheat the oven to its maximum temperature.
2. Finely crush the five spice mix, salt and red peppercorn in a mortar.
3. Score the skin of the pork using a sharp knife.
4. Rub the spice mixture into the cuts.
5. Chop the garlic stems, slice the red pepper, mushrooms and oranges.
6. Transfer fruit and vegetables into a baking dish and place the pork side on top.
7. Drizzle with olive oil and put in the hot oven.
8. After 10 mins, reduce the heat to 325 F and allow to roast for 1 hr.
9. After that first hour, remove any excess fat from the dish and add about two thirds of the white wine.
10. Roast for another 2 hrs, regularly basting the pork with the warm wine.
11. One hour before serving, peel and place the tamarind pods in a small saucepan.
12. Add water to the tamarind and let simmer for 30 mins over medium-high heat.
13. Once the tamarind is loosened, transfer onto a sieve and press the pulp through. (Note: Rinse with hot water to recover more tamarind pulp and juice)
14. Transfer the tamarind puree into the saucepan.
15. Stir in the rest of the white wine, let simmer over medium heat, until reduced and season to taste.

Italian Herb Oven Roast Beef with Chanterelle Mushroom Leek Sauce

Another Sunday dinner favourite! I love this roast because it only takes a few minutes to prepare, never fails and gives enough leftover the following Monday and Tuesday. The Italian herbs not only flavour the meat, but also lock the juices in, keeping the roast moist and tender. Roast beef usually comes with gravy, but here I decided to stick with fall and made a very simple chanterelle mushroom sauce.

Just give it try!

Ingredients:

3 pound (1½ kilogram) outside round roast beef

¼ to ½ cup Dijon mustard

1 cup dried Italian herbs

½ teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon black pepper

1 cup chanterelle mushrooms

2 small leeks

¼ cup dry Vermouth (or dry white wine)

½ cup chicken broth

Olive oil

Salt and pepper to taste

1. Brush the roast with the mustard.

2. Mix the Italian herbs with the slat and pepper. Completely cover the roast with the herb mixture.

3. Preheat the oven to 450 F.

4. Fill the bottom of the roast pan with water.

5. Place the roast on the rack. (Tip: Use the broiling pan if your roast pan does not have a rack)

6. Cook the roast for 10 min.

7. Reduce the heat to 275 F and cook the roast for another 75 mins, until the internal temperature reaches 155 F. (Do not open the oven door at this point!)

8. Remove from the oven and tent with foil for 5-10 mins.

9. In the last 20 mins of roasting, brush and slice the mushrooms.

10. Chop the leeks.

11. Heat some olive oil to medium-high heat in a non-stick pan.

12. Stir in the leeks then the mushrooms. 13. Once the vegetables are soft, add the vermouth and the chicken broth.

14. Let simmer for 10-15 mins, until the roast is ready to serve.

15. Serve with garlic mashed potatoes and peas.