60: Herbed Pork Tenderloin / Tomato Fennel Sauce / Zucchini Coins

Two recipes posted in one night! Aren’t you lucky?

Simple, quick, and incredibly delicious! The sauce alone is out of this world. This is another one of those meals where I didn’t have to buy anything extra because I had all of these ingredients in my refrigerator. Pork filets are coated in fresh herbs with a tomato fennel sauce made complete with zucchini coins sautéed in oil and breadcrumbs. We drank Sebastani Chardonnay with this – toasted oak for smoke, citrusy, and crisp on the finish.

Ingredients and Directions:

2 pork filets (about 3/4 lb)

2 plum tomatoes, halved, seeded, and sliced

1/2 a fennel bulb, diced

1/2 an onion, diced

1/2 a zucchini, sliced

Small handful of breadcrumbs

1 tbsp each of fresh thyme and rosemary, minced (save some for garnish)

Splash of milk or cream

Olive oil

Salt and pepper (add to each component)

Pork—Coat filets in salt, pepper, and minced fresh herbs. Heat oil in a pan over medium heat, and sauté filets for a total of 8-10 minutes, flipping once halfway through. Thicker cuts will require more cooking.

Tomato Fennel Sauce—Sauté onion and fennel over medium heat for about 7 minutes. Now add tomatoes and sauté for another 3-4 minutes. The sauce is ready for the food processor once the mixture has broken down in the pan and the tomatoes almost look mushy. Puree in food processor with a splash of cream or milk, and season with salt and pepper to taste.

Zucchini—Heat oil in pan over medium heat. Add zucchini and bread crumbs, and sauté mixture for 3-4 minutes.

Plate as you wish, garnish with remaining herbs, and enjoy!

59: Pan Roasted Turbot / Tomato Parsley "Confit" / Garlic Broccoli / Roasted Potatoes

It’s been awhile since I posted a recipe because I just moved, which we all know is time consuming and stressful. Anyways, on to the food!

Turbot fish is absolutely amazing. It’s a big time food fish because of its delicate flavor yet somewhat meaty texture. The local markets only seem to have it for a short time over the summer, so I picked up a couple pounds to make over a few different meals. This recipe was probably the best of the ones I made, so here it is. The white fish is rounded out with roasted potatoes, broccoli sautéed in garlic, and a tomato parsley “confit” that lends incredibly bright acidity to the dish. I believe we drank this with a white wine, but I cannot remember what anymore. You could also make this preparation with just about any white fish.

I’m going to try something new for my blog. I’m going to break down the directions by each component of the dish, so you can more easily plan your timing. Give me some feedback on this.

Ingredients and Directions:

1 lb turbot filets

4 small red potatoes, quartered

Broccoli for two people

6-8 cherry tomatoes, halved

1-2 garlic cloves, minced

1-2 tbsp parsley, chopped (save some for garnish)

Olive oil

Salt and pepper (add to each component)

Flour

Fish—Dust fish in flour, salt, and pepper to start. The key to a good pan roasted fish filet is to heat the pan on high heat for a few minutes before adding any oil. Heat a pan on high heat for 3-5 minutes before adding olive oil. Turn heat down to medium high while oil heats for a couple minutes. Add filets to pan and let cook for 4-5 minutes. Flip fish and cook for another 3-4 minutes.

Potatoes—Boil potatoes until they’re almost easily pierced with a fork. I usually add my potatoes to the water while the water is heating up because this cuts down on boiling time. Potatoes should be ready in 10-15 minutes. Drain when ready. You can choose to boil them all the way for a healthy alternative to finishing them off in olive oil in a pan. If finishing in olive oil, heat a pan on medium heat with some olive oil. Add potatoes and cook for about 10-12 minutes, flipping once.

Broccoli—Heat olive oil in a pan over medium heat. Add garlic and let cook for about 1 minute once the oil is hot. Add garlic and sauté for 4-5 minutes.

Tomato Parsley “Confit”—Confit refers to a cooking method to preserve flavor after being immersed in a substance. In this instance, the “confit” was used to bring out the bright acidity of the tomatoes. Heat a pan with olive oil on medium high heat. Add tomatoes and sauté for 2-3 minutes. Add parsley and sauté for additional 2-3 minutes. Serve the tomato mixture with a slotted spoon, so you don’t spoon a ton of oil on your plate.

Plate as you wish, garnish, and enjoy!