October 12, 2015

Pork Tenderloin with Prune Sauce

Natacha Sanz Caballero Meat and Poultry pork, pork tenderloin, pork tenderloin with prune sauce, prunes

If you have been following my blog, by now you know that I like cooking. I like the process, and I like having my family enjoy a delicious meal. A home meal, cooked with love, from natural ingredients, can be very powerful. A family, around the dinner table.

Yet this daily, almost routine event  that one takes for granted, becomes a gift when you realize it will one day come to an end, irremediably, as the cycle of life goes on, children grow, and start leaving the nest.

I know what I’m talking about. Matthew is not around our dinner table on a regular basis anymore, and even the thought of having him back home for the summer might be just that, a thought and a wish, as Matthew is now interviewing for summer jobs, which could take him away from Fort Wayne.

But back to the love of cooking. Yes, I do love cooking. And I like it particularly when I’m not rushed, or when I’m trying a new recipe, or exploring a new ingredient. But I can also relate to the person whose daily thought of putting something delicious and nutritious on the dinner table can become a chore, something one has to do. Most often than not, by early afternoon we still don’t know what we will feed our families that night.

I like to have a list of go-to dishes, with ingredients and staples that I can easily store in my pantry or in my freezer for these occasions. Pork Tenderloin with Prune Sauce is one of those dishes I go to when pressed for time —or for ingredients. Cooking with dried fruit, with any fruit for that matter, fresh or dry, is very common in Spain. It’s one of the customs left over by one of the peoples that lived in the Iberian peninsula centuries ago, the Moors. The so called Moors, muslims that occupied most of the peninsula from the VIII century, cooked with fruits and nuts. Centuries later, as the peninsula was being reconquered for Christianity, the Moors were obliged to convert, or face expulsion from the country. The converted muslims were called Mudéjares.

There are many dishes left over by the Mudéjares, sweets, and also savory dishes that include fruits and nuts. Life for the Mudéjares wasn’t easy, as they had to show with their actions that their conversion hadn’t been a fake one. Including pork in their diet, something not allowed in their religion, was one way they showed they had truly converted.

The Spanish cuisine is forever indebted to all peoples, Moors, Jews, and the Romans before them, that roamed our land before us, and left their imprint, their legacy, not only in our cuisine but in our science, in our architecture, in our songs and dances, and in so many other areas. I’m sharing with you one of those recipes, Pork Tenderloin with Prune Sauce, that you can cook in one pot, the way many of us like cooking when pressed for time.

PORK TENDERLOIN WITH PRUNE SAUCE

Solomillo de Cerdo con Salsa de Ciruelas

Ingredients:

2 pork tendeloins

1 1/2 cups pitted prunes

1/2 cup olive oil, plus 2 Tbs if needed

1 medium onion

1 bay leaf

1 1/2 cups chicken or beef stock

1/2 cup wine (I used Marsala)

Salt and Freshly Ground Pepper to taste

1 tsp cornstarch, dissolved in 4 Tbs of the stock (optional)

1/4 cup flour (optional)

 

Dice 3 or 4 prunes into small pieces and place in a small bowl. Add a few spoonfuls of the wine to this bowl and add the rest of the wine to the bowl containing the whole prunes. Let soak.

Season the pork loins with salt and freshly ground pepper. If using, spread the flour in a shallow bowl. Coat the pork loins with the flour and shake any excess. In a heavy bottom stock pot, or a cast-iron casserole, heat 1/2 cup olive oil over high heat. Add the pork loins, lower the heat to medium, and brown on all sides, 15 to 20 minutes, turning every 4 or 5 minutes, until all sides are golden brown.

Thinly slice the onion and add to the pot (if needed, add 2 Tbs olive oil to the casserole). When onions have softened and become translucent, add the prunes and wine to the casserole and stir, mixing with the onions. Cook for 2-3 minutes and add the stock and the bay leaf. Reduce the heat to medium low and cook, 10-12 minutes, or until the liquid has reduced by half. Turn the pork loins over, cover the casserole, and simmer for about 20 minutes. (Alternatively, you can remove the pork loins from the casserole when they have browned, prepare the sauce in the casserole, and add the pork loins to the casserole before simmering).

Transfer the meat to a cutting board and let cool for a few minutes before slicing.

If using, add the corn starch dissolved in liquid to the casserole. Stir to incorporate and simmer for a few minutes. Adjust for salt and pepper and serve with the sliced pork tenderloin.