Feed'em Friday - Pork Tenderloin

One of my favorite comfort foods meals are basic meat, potatoes, and veggies.  It's something that I grew up having for our Sunday family dinner and still to this day, I crave my mom's beef roast with mashed potatoes and her amazing gravy.

I have put my own twist on this classic Dutch combination by adding new meat recipes to my bag of tricks.  This pork tenderloin recipe is one of our favorites.  It's super easy and the gravy is to die for.  You'll want to drown everything in it - it's that good.  I found the original recipe on Allrecipes.com but as always I have made some changes. (Please note, if you are using the original recipe, the cooking time is WAY off - it will definitely need to cook longer that it states)

INGREDIENTS:

Pork Tenderloin (pick the size that will feed your family - I typically use a 1.25-1.5 pound cut)
Mustard powder
Dried thyme

Marinade:
1/2 cup sherry
1/2 cup soy sauce
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 TBSP fresh ginger root, minced

Sauce:
1 1/4 cup apple jelly
3 TBSP sherry
1 1/2 TBSP soy sauce

FIRST THE PREP:

First, generously coat the meat with thyme and mustard power.  I don't measure this but I basically just sprinkle it on and eyeball it.  It works best to put the thyme on first since it will stick to the moisture of the meat and then add the mustard. 

Once your meat is coated, place it in a gallon freezer bag and add the ingredients for the marinade.

For those who don't use a lot of ginger root in your cooking, here's a tip.

Purchase a piece of ginger room and cut it up in to large 2-3" pieces.  Freeze these pieces in a freezer bag.  When you need fresh ginger just take out a pieces and set it on the counter for 5-10 minutes.  It will then be thawed enough to easily cut off the outer skin. You can then cut it with a sharp knife into a fine mince.  I find that if I cut it while it's still a bit frozen, it's cuts up nicely without getting mushy.

Also, if you have issues with touching garlic and mincing it by hand, I would suggest getting a garlic press.  My favorite is from Pampered chef.  I have had one for 8 years and I use it ALL the time.  It's the best!

Now the recipe suggests to let marinate overnight but honestly, I never think about dinner that far head. The always entertaining and informative Alton Brown taught me that you never need to let meat marinate for more than an hour.  I have done it for as short as 45 minutes and it still tastes great.  But if you're an over-achiever, place your marinating tenderloin in the fridge overnight.

FINALLY, IT'S TIME TO COOK:

Preheat your oven to 325 degrees.

Place your marinated tenderloin into a oven-safe dish.  I used a medium size casserole dish with a glass lid. 

Roast in the oven until the internal temperature is 145 degrees.  The timing is really going to depend on the size of tenderloin you have.  Mine was just 1 1/4 pounds and I had it in for 40-45 minutes.  Generally I tend to let it cook until there is a little pink in the center.  I then allow the meat to rest before I slice it.

While the meat is roasting, you can make the sauce.  

Put the apple jelly into a small sauce pan and heat on medium heat.  

You will have to babysit this sauce since it tend to boil over quickly but it's totally worth it. 

Once your jelly is hot, add the sherry and soy sauce and simmer on low.  Be sure to stir occasionally and don't over reduce the sauce.  It should get a little thicker but it won't be as thick as a traditional gravy.

I serve this meal with mashed potatoes and sweet corn.  

My kids generally like the meal but my husband and I LOVE IT! 

I douse my meat and potatoes with the sauce and it's heavenly.  

So, from my family to yours, enjoy!