Poppy-Seed Pork Tenderloin with Fresh Herb Crust and Creamy Cabbage Slaw plus a Giveaway

Poppy-Seed Pork Tenderloin with Fresh Herb Crust and Creamy Cabbage Slaw

I know I've left you for another week, but I have been busy working and I'd like to give an update.

This past Saturday, I attended an event with Carla Hall from seasons 5 and 8 of Top Chef and currently of The Chew in San Jose. She demonstrated a recipe and signed copies of her new cookbook, Carla's Comfort Foods: Favorite Dishes from Around the World by Carla Hall with Genevieve Ko. I picked up a copy for myself and a second one to giveaway to my readers. More on the details below.

During her demonstration, she noted that the book brings together flavors from different cultures in an attempt to illustrate similarities between them. One example is burgers. She gives tips on how she prefers to prepare them and then adapts the dish by using different spices to make a Persian pita and a Vietnamese banh mi.

The Challenge

Display recipes from the book to entice my readers to want to enter my giveaway.

The Source

The pork recipe was taken from page 147 and the slaw was taken from page 12.

Ingredients

8 cups cabbage, sliced thinly (preferable with a mandolin)
1 1/2 teaspoons plus 1 teaspoon kosher salt, divided
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 tablespoon cider vinegar
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon celery seeds
1/2 cup pre-packaged julienned (shredded) carrots
1 tablespoon chopped yellow onion
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 teaspoons sweet paprika
2 teaspoons poppy seeds
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 whole pork tenderloins, 12- to 14-ounces each
1/2 cup fresh dill leaves, chopped
1/2 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves, chopped

Method

1. Prepare the slaw: Start by combining the cabbage and 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt in a large colander and let it set. After ten minutes have elapsed, wring the cabbage with paper towels to remove any moisture. While waiting for the cabbage, whisk together the mayonnaise, cider vinegar, sugar and celery seeds in a large bowl. Add in the carrots, onion and cabbage, then toss to combine. This can be completed up to twenty-four hours before serving but toss again before serving if necessary.

2. Prepare the pork: Preheat the oven to 425° Fahrenheit. Meanwhile, combine the vegetable oil, paprika, poppy seeds, cinnamon, 1 teaspoon kosher salt, and black pepper in a small bowl. Apply this rub on all sides of each tenderloin and let it stand in an oven-safe skillet or rimmed baking sheet while the oven comes to temperature. Roast the pork until it reaches a temperature of 135° Fahrenheit with an instant-read thermometer, approximately 15 minutes. While the pork cooks spread the parsley and dill on a sheet of parchment and set aside. Remove from oven and roll the tenderloin in it's drippings, then in the herbs. Let it rest for five minutes to allow for carryover cooking, then slice each loin on a bias. To plate, spoon some of the slaw off center of the plate then fan the loin slices around the slaw.

Successful?

Due to it's relative ease of preparation, I recommend this dish as a weeknight meal. I also thought about the pairing of these two recipes because I consulted The Flavor Bible which noted that cabbage complements pork well. The fresh herbs used in this application were unusually flavorful.

In other news, Mrs. Stuntman and I celebrated our anniversary earlier this week. Long time readers might remember we celebrated at home last year where I prepared a radicchio appetizer, a lamb entreé, and an espresso dessert but this year Mrs. Stuntman chose The Basin in Saratoga, California.

We ordered two appetizers, but ordered the same entreé.

Croquetas: Spanish jamon serrano, chicken, onion-bechamel, rolled in bread crumbs, lightly fried

Tuna Cruda Picante: Sashimi tombo, sicilian hot chili oil, spanish chardonnay vin, olive oil, fried shallots

Roasted Fresh Duck: 24hr hour brined breast and leg roasted in pata negra “bellota” fat, with a lemon preserve-english-pea-carrot-leek risotto and a forvm agriculce spanish vinegar reduction

Finally, the details of the giveaway:

I am giving away 1 hardcover copy of Carla's Comfort Foods: Favorite Dishes from Around the World by Carla Hall with Genevieve Ko autographed by Carla Hall. The contest will end on Saturday, April 26, 2014 at 12 midnight Pacific Standard Time. This giveaway is open to Continental US residents only. When the contest concludes, the winner will be chosen by random draw. I will then notify the winner through e-mail and they will have 3 days to respond or another winner will be chosen.

Good Luck!

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