Monday, May 20, 2013
My First Recipe-Pork Tenderloin w/Balsamic Reduction & Roasted Brussel Sprouts
So my culinary school homework, that I get to turn in tonight, involved picking a protein out of a hat and creating a dish around it. So two weeks ago I closed my eyes, reached my hand into the hat, swished it around a bit for good luck and pulled out pork tenderloin. I wasn't sure if I was elated or disappointed. I do not have plethora of pork tenderloin experience, but I have used it, and I wasn't sure if I was hoping for something exotic like ostrich or if I was content with my every day pork tenderloin.
So the night of the class I played around with a roasted brussel sprouts and artichoke little number. Well the artichokes came out tough and I just thought the brussel sprouts were a little bland and definitely needed a little more salt. I was pretty content with the pork, however I thought it could have been browned a little bit more for my taste. As for the sauce well I just didn't care for it at all. It was a white wine pomegranate balsamic sauce and it was just a little too bitter and acidic for my palette. I also added some chopped up apples to it and well I just didn't like the flavor of the balsamic and the apples. And finally I thought the dish needed more color overall. So here is the picture of my original dish:
Next we were supposed to take the dish home and recreate it, taking a picture and writing a recipe to go with our marvelous creation. So here is my first original recipe. Please feel free to give it a try and give me some feedback because I am new to this recipe creation gig.
The first change I made was to add a beet salad to add some color and some depth of flavor. I roasted the beets and served them on the side with olive oil, balsamic and blue cheese vinaigrette. I thought the balsamic would tie in nicely with the reduction sauce of the pork and the blue cheese would add a nice contrast in flavor.
The next change I made was to roast the brussel sprouts with onion and add a hell of a lot more salt. I also cooked them longer to get them a little more on the softer caramelized side. Definitely an improvement.
Next I changed my sauce...I will let you know if this gets me in trouble tonight in school, but I really think the changes are for the better. So I sauteed the shallots and garlic in smoked olive oil and then added the balsamic and cooked until reduced. I added some fresh rosemary as I thought it would compliment the rosemary that was roasted with the pork and I added a little bit of mustard to add some tang. The sauce was perfect. There was a bit of sweetness from the reduced balsamic, the mustard did provide a little tang, the rosemary some nice earthy flavor and the shallots and garlic were lightly caramelized. I was pretty proud of the sauce!!
So here is the picture of my second attempt:
So the night of the class I played around with a roasted brussel sprouts and artichoke little number. Well the artichokes came out tough and I just thought the brussel sprouts were a little bland and definitely needed a little more salt. I was pretty content with the pork, however I thought it could have been browned a little bit more for my taste. As for the sauce well I just didn't care for it at all. It was a white wine pomegranate balsamic sauce and it was just a little too bitter and acidic for my palette. I also added some chopped up apples to it and well I just didn't like the flavor of the balsamic and the apples. And finally I thought the dish needed more color overall. So here is the picture of my original dish:
Next we were supposed to take the dish home and recreate it, taking a picture and writing a recipe to go with our marvelous creation. So here is my first original recipe. Please feel free to give it a try and give me some feedback because I am new to this recipe creation gig.
The first change I made was to add a beet salad to add some color and some depth of flavor. I roasted the beets and served them on the side with olive oil, balsamic and blue cheese vinaigrette. I thought the balsamic would tie in nicely with the reduction sauce of the pork and the blue cheese would add a nice contrast in flavor.
The next change I made was to roast the brussel sprouts with onion and add a hell of a lot more salt. I also cooked them longer to get them a little more on the softer caramelized side. Definitely an improvement.
Next I changed my sauce...I will let you know if this gets me in trouble tonight in school, but I really think the changes are for the better. So I sauteed the shallots and garlic in smoked olive oil and then added the balsamic and cooked until reduced. I added some fresh rosemary as I thought it would compliment the rosemary that was roasted with the pork and I added a little bit of mustard to add some tang. The sauce was perfect. There was a bit of sweetness from the reduced balsamic, the mustard did provide a little tang, the rosemary some nice earthy flavor and the shallots and garlic were lightly caramelized. I was pretty proud of the sauce!!
So here is the picture of my second attempt:
3-4 medium beets, any color
12 oz brussel sprouts, trimmed and cut in half
½ white onion, chopped
1 ½ lb pork tenderloin
5T smoked olive oil
2 shallots, chopped
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1 ¼ cup balsamic vinegar, divided
1-2 tsp Dijon mustard
¼ cup blue cheese, crumbled
3-4 sprigs rosemary, divided
1.
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Cut the leaves off
the beets and trim. Leave the skin on. Wrap the beets individually in foil and
place in a baking pan with a ¼” of water. Place in oven and roast for 40
minutes or until tender when tested with a fork.
2.
Place the brussel sprouts in a roasting pan with
1T olive oil, salt, pepper and onion. Roast for 30-40 minutes or until desired
consistency. The brussel sprouts and beets can cook simultaneously.
3.
Season the pork tenderloin with salt and pepper.
Add 2T olive oil to a hot skillet. Add the pork tenderloin and brown on all
sides. Take 2 sprigs of rosemary and tie to the pork using kitchen twine.
4.
Put the pork on a baking sheet or roasting pan
and cook for 20 minutes or until the internal temperature is at 135 degrees
using a meat thermometer.
5.
Remove the beets from the oven and cool. If you
are in a hurry peel them under cold water. Chop the beets and toss with 1T
olive oil, ¼ cup balsamic vinegar, blue cheese and salt and pepper.
6.
Add 1T olive oil to same pan that was used to
brown the pork. Add the shallots and garlic and brown. Add 1 cup balsamic
vinegar and 2 sprigs of chopped rosemary to pan. Slowly stir in the mustard and
turn the heat to simmer, cooking until the vinegar has reduced to half.
7.
To serve, make a bed of brussel sprouts. Slice
the pork and serve on the brussel sprouts, drizzling the balsamic reduction
sauce over the pork. Serve the beets on the side.
Enjoy my friends and I am looking forward to your feedback. Cheers!
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