Rosemary Pork Tenderloin with Red Lentils Things have been a bit crazy at the Konold household I we haven't had a lot of time to do keep up on the blog. With our kids getting busier and busier with sports, school and friends we find that if we want to have dinner together as a family, we have a short 30-45 minute window from when I get home from work to the time we have to leave for the first round of swim practice. So our dinners tend to be quick and easy, but still very tasty. We love steaming fish serving it with a sprinkling of sea salt and a drizzle of good olive oil along side steamed veggies and a quick salad. We can knock that dinner out in about 15 minutes and we then have 30 minutes to enjoy dinner together.
This Sunday after conference sessions we decided on rosemary pork tenderloin with red lentils. This was due to a lack of planning on my part Saturday night. These small tenderloins thaw quickly so it was an easy choice after two conference sessions. We have a ton of rosemary growing in our garden and the kids love going out and bringing me back a handful. With a mortar and pestle, you can make a quick marinade that is perfect with pork. The lentils cook quickly, so this is another easy quick meal that is a great stand in for Sunday dinner.
Ingredients
1 pork tenderloin 2-3 lbs
3 cloves garlic (sliced)
handful of fresh rosemary (roughly chopped)
sea salt black pepper corns
1/3 cup oil oil
Lentils
1 1/2 cups dry red lentils
2 carrots (1/8" dice)
1 clove garlic (pressed)
medium white onion (1/8" dice)
chicken stock 2-3 cups
2 sprigs thyme
salt to taste
For the Pork
in a mortar combine the garlic and a few pinches of sea salt. (You can do this in a food processor, but the mortar and pestle work best to bash out the oils in the rosemary). Bash the garlic until in forms a paste with the salt. Add the peppercorns (10-15). The garlic paste will keep the pepper from flying all over the kitchen when you bash it up. Pound the pepper corns until all have been crushed. Add the chopped rosemary and really bang it up to release the wonderful oils. Drizzle the oil oil until you have a nice thick rosemary garlic paste. Rub this all over the pork and allow to sit at room temperature for about 45 minutes.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Place an oven proof pan on the stove over medium-high heat. Add a drizzle of oil oil and when shimmering add the pork and sear all sides. Transfer to the oven and cook for about 20 minutes or until a thermometer reads 145-150. Remove from oven and allow to rest for 10-15 minutes before carving.
For the Lentils
Saute the garlic, onion and carrots in a little olive oil and salt until the onions are translucent. Add the lentils and saute until the lentils have been coated with sauteed veggies. Cover with chicken stock and reduce heat to medium low. Allow to simmer for about 6-8 minutes. Just watch and keep tasting. (if you need to add more stock, do so in 1/2 cup increments). Once the lentils are soft, season with salt and pepper and remove from heat. Keep warm until ready to plate. In the center of a large place, place about 1/2 cup of the lentils. Top with 1-2 1/2" slices of the pork tenderloin. Drizzle with some of the pork pan juices and season with black pepper. Add a sprig of thyme and you are done...
This Sunday after conference sessions we decided on rosemary pork tenderloin with red lentils. This was due to a lack of planning on my part Saturday night. These small tenderloins thaw quickly so it was an easy choice after two conference sessions. We have a ton of rosemary growing in our garden and the kids love going out and bringing me back a handful. With a mortar and pestle, you can make a quick marinade that is perfect with pork. The lentils cook quickly, so this is another easy quick meal that is a great stand in for Sunday dinner.
Ingredients
1 pork tenderloin 2-3 lbs
3 cloves garlic (sliced)
handful of fresh rosemary (roughly chopped)
sea salt black pepper corns
1/3 cup oil oil
Lentils
1 1/2 cups dry red lentils
2 carrots (1/8" dice)
1 clove garlic (pressed)
medium white onion (1/8" dice)
chicken stock 2-3 cups
2 sprigs thyme
salt to taste
For the Pork
in a mortar combine the garlic and a few pinches of sea salt. (You can do this in a food processor, but the mortar and pestle work best to bash out the oils in the rosemary). Bash the garlic until in forms a paste with the salt. Add the peppercorns (10-15). The garlic paste will keep the pepper from flying all over the kitchen when you bash it up. Pound the pepper corns until all have been crushed. Add the chopped rosemary and really bang it up to release the wonderful oils. Drizzle the oil oil until you have a nice thick rosemary garlic paste. Rub this all over the pork and allow to sit at room temperature for about 45 minutes.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Place an oven proof pan on the stove over medium-high heat. Add a drizzle of oil oil and when shimmering add the pork and sear all sides. Transfer to the oven and cook for about 20 minutes or until a thermometer reads 145-150. Remove from oven and allow to rest for 10-15 minutes before carving.
For the Lentils
Saute the garlic, onion and carrots in a little olive oil and salt until the onions are translucent. Add the lentils and saute until the lentils have been coated with sauteed veggies. Cover with chicken stock and reduce heat to medium low. Allow to simmer for about 6-8 minutes. Just watch and keep tasting. (if you need to add more stock, do so in 1/2 cup increments). Once the lentils are soft, season with salt and pepper and remove from heat. Keep warm until ready to plate. In the center of a large place, place about 1/2 cup of the lentils. Top with 1-2 1/2" slices of the pork tenderloin. Drizzle with some of the pork pan juices and season with black pepper. Add a sprig of thyme and you are done...
