Chris Cooks: Seared Pork Tenderloin, Roasted Summer Vegetables & Basil Dressing
September 9, 2018
This is an amazingly straight forward and delicious meal that uses some of my favorite late summer vegetables. Using a few specific cooking procedures and techniques, we’re able to produce amazing flavors with very simple ingredients.
Seared Pork Tenderloin, Roasted Summer Vegetables & Basil Dressing
Ingredients
Seared Pork
- whole pork tenderloin trimmed
- 1 tbsp salt
- 1/2 tbsp black pepper
- 2 sprigs thyme fresh
- 2 sprigs oregano fresh
- 4 garlic cloves smashed, peeled
- 2 tbsp olive oil
Roasted Vegetables
- 2 cups Swiss chard stems cut into 1in pieces
- 1/2 yellow onion cut into 1in pieces
- 1 bunch asparagas cut into 1in pieces
- 2 yellow squash large dice
- 1 medium eggplant peeled, large diced
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tbsp salt
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 2 tbsp fresh parsley
Basil Dressing
- 1/3 cup fresh basil finely chopped
- 2 garlic cloves reserved from cooking with the pork
- thyme & oregano reserved from cooking with the pork
- 1-2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 pinch salt
- 1 pinch black pepper
- 1/2 tsp lemon zest
- 1 1/2 tbsp lemon juice
Instructions
For the pork
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Heat a large cast iron dutch oven over medium heat. Season the tenderloin with salt and pepper, add 2 tbsp olive oil to the pan and put the tenderloin into the pan.
- Add the garlic and herbs, reduce the heat to medium low and sear the pork on all sides then place in the preheated oven and roast until a meat thermometer reads 142/143 when inserted into the thickest part of the pork.
- Remove the pork tenderloin and set aside to rest. Reserve 2 cloves of garlic and the sprigs of herbs.
For the vegetables
- Add 2 more tbsp olive oil to the dutch oven the pork was cooked in. Add all of the ingredients for the roasted vegetables to the dutch oven and sauté.
- Move the pan to the oven and roast for 20-30 minutes, tossing the vegetables around about halfway through cooking.
For the basil dressing
- Chop the reserved garlic and the leaves from the reserved herbs. Add them, along with the chopped basil, to a mortar and pestle and mash together.
- Once a textured paste has been created, add the olive oil, salt, pepper, lemon juice, and lemon zest and mix with a spoon.
To plate
- Put the vegetables on a large serving platter. Cut the pork into 1/2in-3/4in slices and fan them out across the top of the vegetables so the juices will help flavor the vegetables. Top the pork with the basil dressing, and finish the whole dish with a squeeze of fresh lemon juice.
| Cutting Board | Knife | Cast Iron Dutch Oven |
|---|---|---|
| Wooden Spoon | Ingredient Cups | Pepper Mill |
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This looks delicious, but I’m wondering about the fact that the vegetables don’t go into the oven until the pork is done. Does the pork not get cold while it rests for 20-30 minutes? Would there be a way to have the vegetables and pork cook at the same time to reduce the overall time to get this meal ready? Thanks!
The pork cools down, but not to what I would call “cold”. Just make sure you don’t slice into it during the resting time. You can also put some foil over it if desired. But when you slice it and lay it atop the hot vegetables, it becomes a really pleasant temperature, just warmed through.
This sounds delicious! General cooking/measuring question… How do you measure whole basil leaves? Do you pile them loosely into a measuring cup or really smash them in? I have a pesto recipe that, like this one, calls for the basil leaves to be measured before they’re cut, and I’m never sure exactly how they’re supposed to be measured. Thanks for any advice! :)
Great question – after using basil a lot you’ll start to get a feel for it, but for most recipes it will say what the end product should be and how much. For example, this recipe calls for 1/3 cup basil, finely chopped. So once it’s finely chopped, you want 1/3 cup. If a recipe calls for 1 cup of fresh basil, but doesn’t say to chop it or anything, then you just kinda loosely pack it in. And in the end, the recipe will be pretty forgiving on something like basil. If you get close, it’ll be great. :)
Awesome. Thank you so much! :)
Made this tonight for my husband and myself, swapping the veggies for Brussels sprouts, onion, and green beans (on hand), and served both on top of a little cauliflower rice….it was delicious! That basil dressing is to die for! Lots left over for later in the week too. Yum! Thanks for sharing.
So glad you liked it, Susan!
Can’t wait to be out of kitchen construction so I can get to work on these amazing recipes!!!!
Hi Chris! You’ve just presented one of my all time favorite cuts of pork and added a new twist with so many fresh herbs. This is gonna be GOOOOD! Thanks for taking your time to perfect this for us.