| Drinks and Dinner Event: Pork Tenderloin in Port-Prune Sauce and "Your" Favorite Cocktail |
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| Tuesday, 01 December 2009 13:18 |
Today I welcome a guest post in my Drinks and Dinner series. This entry is from the dynamic duo of Denise and Laudalino of Chez Us. When a spitfire bartender at of our one local watering holes didn't handle Lenny's (Laudalino's) request for a Sazerac so well, Lenny took matters into his own hands and apparently has become quite proficient at making them himself. I'm sure we all appreciate his dogged dedication to the cause. He probably had to test the recipe over and over. And over. Obrigado Lenny! This cocktail would be a lovely pairing with the pork. The Herbsaint or Absinthe in the Sazerac gives a licorice note to the drink that would be fantastic with pork. Here's my mise en place for a Sazerac:
and my finished Sazerac cocktail:
Here is the post from Denise and Lenny, including two recipes and an invitation to join us by preparing the dish and creating or selecting your own cocktail to pair with it. I had a terrific conversation with Davide Leite myself on the advent of his cookbook's arrival talking about Azorean cuisine.
And now to our guest post, with thanks to Denise, Lenny, and David!
Jacqueline and I have been talking about hosting a virtual food event, for the past couple months; okay, really it has been since August. She was twittering and writing about a Spiced Mexican Chicken dish that she served with Tabasco Watermelon Margaritas and we got to thinking that it would be fun to have an event where we provide you with the main entree recipe and ask you, our readers to come up with the ultimate cocktail to pair with this meal. In the same breath, David Leite’s newest book, The New Portuguese Table had come out and we decided to toss around the idea with David. We were really excited to use one of his pork tenderloin recipes as we thought it would be a nice transition into the holidays, something festive for a cocktail pairing. David was so kind as to let us publish his Pork Tenderloin in a Port-Prune Sauce recipe for this particular event. Just a quick review of David’s book, it is fantastic. Lenny is Portuguese and he loves the take on traditional recipes, the same flavors that mom makes but with a fresh and new taste. We have made a few of the items and all have been outstanding! Lenny and I made this dish last night and it was amazing. I could not find any pork tenderloins at either of my butchers, so I did end up using a Pork Loin Roast, which worked out perfectly. The pork came out with a crispy outside and very moist inside. I loved that use of prunes and port in the sauce, it was not overly sweet and slightly smokey (thank you port). We tried two different plates, one with cilantro and one without, the cilantro really added a nice freshness to the sauce and we recommend using it. The only other thing that we did differently was to add slices of yellow potatoes and turnips, to the roasting pan, about an hour before the roasting was finished. One can never go wrong with potatoes roasted in pork fat! We decided to serve a Sazerac with this particular dish as we both thought the boldness of the Rye would be a nice addition to the slightly sweet sauce. Normally, I am not a Sazerac fan, but I have to say,Lenny out did himself with this round; they were smooth, icy cold and perfectly balanced with the Herbsaint Liquer and Rye. The rules for this dinner party are as is:
Recipe: Pork Tenderloin in a Port-Prune Sauce
Position a rack in the middle of the oven and crank up the heat to 450. Dump the prunes into a small saucepan, add the port, beef stock, ginger, and honey, and bring just to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer, covered, for 15 minutes. Turn off the heat and let steep for 20 minutes. Pour the prunes and liquid into a blender or food processor and buzz until smooth. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium high heat until hot. Season both tenderloins well with salt and pepper and sear one at a time, turning occasionally, until brown, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a baking sheet and set the skillet aside. Roast the pork until an instant red thermometer inserted in the center of the meat registers just under 150, 15 – 18 minutes. Transfer the tenderloins to a cutting board, tend with foil, and let rest for 5 minutes. Pour off all but a thin film of fat from the skillet. Lower the heat to medium, toss in the garlic and cook until lightly colored, about 2 minutes. Add the port-prune sauce and stir to pick up the browned bits stuck to the skillet. Pour in the vinegar, and any accumulated juices from the pork, and cook to meld the flavors, 2 to 3 minutes. If the sauce seems thick, add more beef stock. For an elegant take, strain the sauce through a sieve. Cut the tenderloins on the diagonal into ½ inch slices. Divide the slices among six plates, drizzle with the warm sauce, and sprinkle with cilantro. Recipe: Sazerac
Chill an old-fashioned glass by filling with crushed ice or refrigerate or freeze for at least 30 minutes. Add the Herbsaint to the glass; swirl it around to coat the entire sides and bottom of the glass. Discard the excess. In a cocktail shaker, add 4 or 5 small ice cubes, sugar, rye whiskey, and bitters. Shake gently for about 30 seconds; strain into the prepared glass. Twist lemon peel over the drink and then place in the drink. Makes 1 serving. ~ ~ ~ Please do check out the fun and fabulous Chez Us blog - it's packed with recipes and delicious ideas for dinner. Other entries in the Dinner and Drinks theme:
Please see David Dadekian's blog describing his entry, Drinks and Dinner Event: Pork Tenderloin in a Port-Prune Sauce & Ginger Port Martini
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