Monday, June 2, 2008

SOUTHERN LIVING'S TORTILLA-CRUSTED PORK

My friend, Siri (we call her Sara), brought this dish over the other night. It's supposed to be cooked in a large skillet over medium heat, in some oil. Instead, we put it on our grill, over the middle burner that was turned off.
Sara said her grandkinds loved this, and they're not very adventuresome eaters. Fusspot Guy also liked it, so I think it's a winner. It's good cold, too. You're supposed to serve it with tomatilla salsa, and pico de gallo, but we served it with some jarred salsa I had in the fridge. We were also having chicken satay with peanut sauce, and we tried dipping the pork in the peanut sauce and actually liked it better. Maybe it's just that we went bonkers over the peanut sauce (that post is coming, stay tuned). Here's the recipe -- give it a try, I think you'll like it.

Tortilla-Crusted Pork
Rating: 8 out of 10
(Makes 6 servings; Prep: 20 min., Cook: 12 min.)
2 lb. pork tenderloin
1/2 cup finely crushed blue-corn tortilla chips
1/2 cup finely crushed tortilla chips
1 Tbsp. coarsely ground pepper
1/2 tsp. chili powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. ground cumin
3 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil, divided
Garnish: fresh cilantro sprigs

1. Remove silver skin from tenderloin, leaving a thin layer of fat covering tenderloin. Cut meat into 1" thick medallions.
2. Combine tortilla chips and seasonings in a bowl. Brush medallions with 1-1/2 Tbsp. oil, and dredge in tortilla chip mixture, pressing mixture into medallions on all sides to thoroughly coat. (Note: Sara used all 3 Tbsp. of the oil here because these were put on the grill, not in the skillet.)
3. Cook pork medallions in remaining 1-1/2 Tbsp. hot oil in large skillet over medium heat 6 minutes on each side, or until done. (Note: We placed them on a turned off burner, using the other two burners as indirect heat, closed the cover, and cooked them about 15 minutes, turning once. The grill was set at 400F.) Serve with salsas. Garnish, if desired.
This recipe is from Karin Jane Stern, Hutto, Texas
Per serving (not including salsas): Calories, 262; fat 12.5g; protein 32.4g; carb 4.1g;
sodium 262mg

No comments: