Oven-baked Cuban-Style Pork Tenderloin

Tonight, I decided to become a bit more adventurous with my cooking. On the docket, my clean palate of pork tenderloin, the perfect meat to test out new spice combinations. Pork is used across a wide variety of cultures and as such has many different flavors associated with it. One of my favorite dishes is a Cuban-style pork that I had while in Ft. Lauderdale. While I was not sure what the specific spices were associated with this meal, I could sense definite garlic notes, a spice of cumin and paprika, and perhaps something else that I couldn't put my finger on. So, I thought, let's try a blend of these three flavors I knew were associated with this incredibly memorable meal at the Las Vegas Cuban Cuisine in Ft. Lauderdale. The taste of this meal that I prepared was truly fantastic. A nice salty, spicy (not hot spicy, but actually full of flavor) piece of pork that remained incredibly moist and tender. I'll definitely make this again!

Here is my recipe:

1 pork tenderloin, cleaned of silver skin
Garlic salt
Olive oil
Paprika
Cumin

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. In an oven-ready dish, coat the bottom with olive oil and roll the pork tenderloin in the oil to coat it. Mix together the garlic salt, paprika, and cumin into a single rub. Rub the mixture onto the olive-oil coated pork. Cook for 25-35 minutes, testing for temperature at 20 minutes. Pork should be cooked to 165 degrees and allowed to rest for 5-15 minutes after cooking prior to cutting. The resting of the pork allows the juices to stay in the meat. If you cut the meat open immediately after cooking, the pork will leak all of the fluid and lead to a potentially less tender piece of meat.

Grilled seasoned pork medallions with sweet corn and caprese orzo

This was a quick meal. Over the years I've struggled to get excellent flavor out of my grilled pork tenderloin. Pre-seasoning helps sometimes, but generally, the seasoning burns. So this time, I thought I'd create a "deconstructed" seasoned pork tenderloin for grilling. The result: excellent flavor for each medallion. The following is a great recipe for a dinner entree or even appetizers! The grilled sweet corn is excellent, with smoky flavors matching the corn's sweetness. One of my favorites.

The Caprese Orzo was a throw-together at the last minute. A Caprese salad usually consists of fresh basil, large sliced tomatoes and fresh mozzarella cheese spritzed with olive oil and ground black pepper. This recipe is for a "mac & cheese" version of the salad. Overall, the flavors were there, but something was missing. Perhaps addition of garlic salt or fresh smashed garlic would have augmented this dish to the next level. The cheese melts really quickly so be sure to stir the pot quickly and serve immediately. Otherwise, the cheese congeals and causes the orzo to be very sticky. Overall, a great meal with a few tweaks here and there! This meal also was served with a 2004 Ridge Oltranti Zinfandel. For reviews on wines, visit: http://thewinedrop.blogspot.com/.

"Deconstructed" Pork Tenderloin for Grilling
1 pork tenderloin, cleaned of silver skin and excess fat
Favorite seasoning (I used Penzey's Galena Street or Barbecue of the Americas)
Pam Cooking Spray

Slice the pork tenderloin into half-inch thick medallions. Press the medallions with your fist to flatten. Add seasoning and rub in. Allow the seasoning to sit for 10 minutes to allow for the meat to take in the flavors. I seasoned only one side, as seasoning both sides would probably be overwhelming. Spray a hot grill with Pam cooking spray and immediately place the medallions on the grill, with the seasoning side up. Depending on the thickness of your meat and temperature of your grill, turn the medallions after 5 minutes. Keep a close eye, as these cook very fast. Cook another 5 minutes (maximum) and remove from grill. These are ready to serve.

Grilled Sweet Corn
2 ears of sweet corn, remove the fine "hairs" from the ear but leave the husks on
Large pot of water
Butter (optional)
Salt (option)

After removing the "hairs" from the corn, soak the ears of corn (husks included) in cold water for 30 minutes at room temperature. After soaking, place the ears of corn, covered with their husks, onto a hot grill. Be sure to turn the corn every 5-10 minutes. The corn is done when the husks have browned/blackened. Serve the corn with husks removed.

Caprese Orzo
1 box of Orzo
1-2 Roma tomatoes, chopped
3-4 Fresh Basil leaves, chopped
1.5 cups of fresh grated mozzerella
Salt to flavor

Boil the orzo until cooked to preference. Orzo cooks quickly. Strain the orzo but do not run under cold water. Add all ingredients back to the hot pot. Under low heat, stir in the cheese until melted. Serve immediately with fresh ground pepper.