Since the Accidental Locavore’s trip to France last year, we always have a pork tenderloin (or two) hanging around. And adding Brussels sprouts to any dish is almost a no-brainer in my house. This is from epicurious and serves 4:
- 5 1/2 tablespoons vegetable oil, divided
- 2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
- 1 1/2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 3 garlic cloves, finely grated, divided
- 2 teaspoons finely grated ginger
- 1 1/2 tablespoon Sriracha
- Salt
- Two 1-pound pork tenderloins
- 2 tablespoons fish sauce
- 2 tablespoons lime juice
- 1/2 teaspoon honey
- 1/2 to 1 red Thai chile pepper, seeded and very thinly sliced
- 1 1/2 tablespoons roasted unsalted peanuts, chopped
- 1 1/2 pounds Brussels sprouts, trimmed and halved
- 3/4 cup chicken broth or water
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1 tablespoon roughly chopped mint
Preheat oven to 400°F. In a medium bowl, whisk together 2 tablespoons oil, vinegar, soy sauce, 2 of the grated garlic cloves, ginger, Sriracha and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Place pork in a large Ziploc bag and pour marinade over, tossing to coat. Marinate for 30 minutes at room temperature.
In a small bowl, whisk together remaining 1 grated garlic clove, fish sauce, lime, honey, chile pepper, peanuts and 1 tablespoon water. Set aside.
On a rimmed baking sheet, toss Brussels sprouts with 1 1/2 tablespoons oil and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Roast 15 minutes, then toss. Continue to roast until browned and cooked through, 10 to 15 minutes more. Transfer to a large bowl and toss with the vinaigrette
Meanwhile, heat a large skillet with 2 tablespoons oil over medium-high heat. Remove pork from marinade (saving the marinade) and sear on all sides until lightly browned, about 3 minutes per side. Turn tenderloins onto their fourth side and add broth to pan. Transfer skillet to oven and roast pork, basting occasionally, until internal temperature reaches 140°- 145° about 10 to 13 minutes. Transfer pork to cutting board and let rest 5 minutes, and reserve skillet.
Add reserved marinade to the skillet and cook over medium heat, stirring and scraping up the browned bits, until thickened to a pan sauce that coats the back of a spoon, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and whisk in butter. Taste and adjust seasoning.
Serve the sliced pork with the pan sauce and the Brussels sprouts, sprinkle with mint, and enjoy!
My verdict: I’ve made this twice for two people, using the whole recipe for the sauce and vinaigrette, but with only one pork tenderloin and fewer Brussels sprouts. It’s a really good dish, but I’m not totally convinced that the two components need each other. Brussels sprouts with fish sauce (and cilantro) are a surprisingly great combo and the peanuts add a nice crunch. The pork with the marinade/sauce is really good and would be fine with any number of vegetables like bok choy or spinach (especially if you’re not a sprouts fan). If you have time (or remember), you can marinate the pork ahead of time—just refrigerate it.
