Burgers. Chicken. Veggie kabobs. Pork often gets overlooked, especially in the summertime. It’s too bad, because pork packs a sweeter flavor with an almost steak-like texture. Introduce (or reintroduce) your family to “The Other White Meat.” Oops. That’s the old slogan from the National Pork Council. Today, it’s “Be Inspired.” The “inspiration” for this dish is pieces of moist tenderloin hugged by a thick slice of bacon. Hungry yet?
This bacon-wrapped pork tenderloin pieces recipe comes together quickly. A few points to pull off this pork-on-pork entree: First, make sure you pick up a tenderloin, not a pork loin. The loin is a much bigger, tougher cut and will take longer to cook. Next, you’re going to be cooking the bacon just slightly before sauteing to make sure it gets crisped and doesn’t end up soggy. Finally, the only tricky part is securing the bacon with toothpicks – and you can either thread them in place or poke the toothpick straight into the meat. (I saute these tenderloins in a skillet, but you might also try grilling them.)
As they’re cooking, I throw together a salad so I can serve it alongside the pork. My advice is to put some sort of fresh-cut fruit into your salad. Fruit melds well with pork. Apples, peaches and pineapple will enliven the flavor of the salad – and the pork. You might try out this mustard seed vinaigrette salad from a past Crumbs.
One note: The guidelines on cooking pork have changed – no more overcooked, dry meat! The internal temperature now needs to reach 145 (that’s 15 degrees less than what used to be the recommendation).
