Pan sauce is something I tend to overlook. It isn't that I don't appreciate a good pan sauce. Or recognize that pan sauce can be the difference between a good recipe and an outstanding one. I'm neglectful because often I'm in such a rush to get dinner on the table that I don't take the five minutes needed to make the sauce.
But I'm working on it. Slowing down. Enjoying the process of making dinner, not just eating it.
This pan sauce of wine, vinegar, chicken stock and golden raisins gets a jolt of brightness from ginger paste. Look for ginger paste in tubes in the produce department.
I served the pork with roasted vegetables (cauliflower and red bell peppers) and brown jasmine rice.
Roasted Pork Tenderloin With Golden Raisins and Ginger
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 (12-ounce) pork tenderloin
Kosher salt and ground black pepper
Grated zest 1 Meyer lemon (can substitute a combination of lemon and orange zests)
2 tablespoons champagne vinegar
2 tablespoons dry white wine (I used a pinot grigio)
1/3 cup chicken stock
1/4 cup golden raisins
Scant 1/8 teaspoon ginger paste
Heat oven to 400 degrees.
Heat oil in a small roasting pan or oven-safe skillet (don't use cast-iron) over medium-high heat. Season pork with salt and pepper. Sear tenderloin until well browned on all sides.
Sprinkle zest over pork, then transfer pan to oven. Roast 20 minutes or until internal temperature reaches 145 degrees. Transfer pork to a cutting board and place roasting pan over medium-high heat. Whisk in vinegar and wine, scraping up the browned bits in the pan. Simmer until reduced by half, and then add the chicken stock. Simmer until slightly reduced again, and stir in the raisins. Cook 1 minute. Remove from heat.
Thinly slice pork and arrange on a deep serving platter. Add any accumulated juices, along with the ginger, to the sauce. Pour sauce over pork. Serve immediately.
Makes 3 generous servings.
Recipe inspired by Amanda Hesser of The New York Times
Food on 04/01/2015