Balsamic Spinach Stuffed Pork Tenderloin

We've still got a couple of weeks until the glorious return of the farmers' markets to the fair city of Chicago, which means there's still time for a couple more wintry recipes! This juicy pork tenderloin is stuffed with a vitamin- and flavor-packed sauteed spinach mixture, seared, and finished in the oven. It's a perfect dinner for a rainy April weeknight. Soon it will be time for spring peas, asparagus, and rhubarb. But for now, let's use up the root vegetables and apples and enjoy where we are!





Balsamic Spinach Stuffed Pork Tenderloin

1 pork tenderloin, thin end trimmed
olive oil
salt and pepper

For the stuffing:
3 slices bacon, chopped
1/2 cup thinly sliced shallots
5 ounces fresh spinach
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. (*Roast some sweet potatoes and apples while you prepare the pork.)

Saute bacon in a large skillet over medium heat until crisp. Using a slotted spoon, remove to a paper towel-lined plate. Reduce heat to low and add shallots. Cook, stirring occasionally, until shallots are caramelized, about 10-15 minutes. Add spinach along with a splash of water and saute until wilted. Add the balsamic vinegar and cook a couple of minutes to mellow. Taste and season with salt and pepper.

Butterfly the pork tenderloin by using a sharp knife to cut into the long side. Stop before you have completely separated the top and bottom halves. Open it up so that it lays flat, cover with plastic wrap, and use the flat side of a meat tenderizer to pound it to between 1/4 and 1/2 inch thick. Remove the plastic wrap and season the inside with salt and pepper. Cut three 10-inch pieces of butcher's twine and evenly space them under the flattened tenderloin. Arrange the spinach filling along the middle of the tenderloin, and carefully roll it up. Arrange it seam-side down, and secure with the butcher's twine.

Preheat an oven-safe skillet over medium-high heat, and add 2-3 tablespoons olive oil. When the oil is hot, add the rolled-up tenderloin seam-side down, and sear all sides for 3-5 minutes, until well browned. Make sure to leave it for at least 3 minutes without moving when you begin the sear, to prevent it from falling apart. Once the tenderloin is browned on all sides, transfer to the oven for 10 minutes to finish cooking through.

Allow to rest for 5-10 minutes before slicing.

"Yankee" Slow-Cooker Pulled Pork

 

My dad is the king of pulled pork sandwiches.  He's from Memphis, so it makes sense that he would be.  He has a very authentic way of preparing them.  He hickory-smokes the pork shoulder for hours and hours.  And hours.  He makes cole slaw.  He serves the sandwiches on buns with spicy Memphis barbeque sauce, and the cole slaw right on top - not optional.  While I would love to be able to make these sandwiches, since just thinking about them makes me mouth start to water, I don't have a smoker, or my dad's eternal patience to keep adjusting the coals and checking the pork to make sure it's at the right temperature.  So I settle for another preparation of a pork shoulder, which does the trick in a pinch: the slow cooker.

Dad would call this Yankee pulled pork.  It is.  It doesn't come with cole slaw, and it's doused in a thick, sweet sauce.  It's not authentic at all.  But it still tastes freaking amazing.  Because it's still PORK.

Amen.

"Yankee" Slow-Cooker Pulled Pork

1 3- to 4-pound bone-in pork shoulder

1 12-oz. can Dr. Pepper

1 onion, roughly chopped

3 cloves garlic, smashed

1/3 cup bourbon

1/2 can chipotle peppers in adobo (or chipotle salsa, if you didn't read the label)

Spice Rub:
5 tablespoons kosher salt

2 tablespoons black pepper

1 teaspoon smoked paprika

1 teaspoon chili powder

3 tablespoons brown sugar

1 teaspoon dried thyme

Coat the outside of the pork shoulder with the spice rub, really rubbing it into the meat.  Place it in a dish or ziploc bag, and refrigerate it for 2-3 hours or overnight.  Heat a couple tablespoons of olive oil in a skillet, and brown the meat on all sides.  Place onions and garlic in a layer in the bottom of the slow cooker.  When the pork is browned, place it on top of the onions.  Pour Dr. Pepper, bourbon, and chipotles over the pork, place the lid on the slow cooker, and cook for 4-6 hours on high, or 8-10 on low. 

Remove meat to a plate, discard any bones, and use two forks to shred the meat.  Then strain some of the extra fat off of the liquid in the slow cooker.  You can do this a couple of ways.  If you have a lot of time, you can put the liquid in the fridge, and allow it to cool completely.  The fat will sit on top in an orangey-yellow layer, and you can just scrape it off and throw it away.  But if you just got home from work, and want to eat the pork as soon as possible, you can just use a big spoon to carefully skim the fat off the top.  

Once the extra fat is skimmed, adjust the seasonings in the sauce to taste.  I added some barbeque sauce, ketchup and apple cider vinegar, stirring and tasting until it was the way I like it.  Play with it until you get it right, and then add the shredded meat back in and keep it warm until you're ready to eat.  Pile it high on toasted buns, and top with pickles, onions, cole slaw... whatever makes you happy.