Stuffed Pork Tenderloin

Our neighbourhood butcher has so many great, local, and economical cuts of meat, sometimes I have trouble holding myself back at the meat counter. This week, I picked up a lovely pork tenderloin for $6.50….without much of an idea of what I would do with it.

I started looking at recipes on-line, and then decided stuffed was the way to go. It was much easier than I thought it would be. My previous idea of adventures in stuffing things was some feta inside a chicken breast (which, by the way, is delicious when you throw in some sundried tomatoes). Pork tenderloin was considerably more risky. It involved pounding meat, cooking the stuffing, tying things shut, etc. But I’m happy to report that this was a successful experiment.

I cooked up a version of my favourite holiday-time apple and onion stuffing, which I thought would go perfectly with pork. I was correct. For side dishes, a field greens and feta-craisin-pumpkin seed salad with home made vinaigrette and some roasted delicata squash rings went nicely. To make the squash rings, see this video.

Stuffed Pork Tenderloin

Ingredients:

• 1 pork tenderloin
• 3 slices of stale bread, crusts removed and cubed
• 1 apple, peeled and thinly sliced
• 2 stalks celery, thinly sliced
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 1 clove garlic, finely minced
• sprinkle of salt and pepper
• 2 tbsp. butter

Instructions:

1. Saute the onions, garlic and celery in butter until softened.
2. Add in the bread cubes and get them toasty.
3. Add the apples to this mix, sprinkle salt over the pan and turn heat to low.
4. Slice the pork tenderloin down the centre, leaving 1/2 inch in tact. Spread the pork out, butterfly style, and pound out to evenly flatten.
5. Place stuffing in the centre, roll into a log and tie the tenderloin together.
6. Cook for 45- 60 minutes at 375F, or until meat thermometer reads 150F when inserted into thickest part of roll.

The full meal deal with a nice glass of Aussie GSM.