Pork Tenderloin with Orange Sauce

When my pal Lorna came to dinner a few days ago, I wanted to make something special. So I adapted this recipe from Canadian amateur golfer Jackie Eddy's cookbook, Slicing, Hooking and Cooking, published in 2005. My friend Barbara Lefevre says Jackie - a former food editor for the Edmonton Sun and an enthusiastic golfer - could spend the better part of a day on the golf course and still present a wonderful dinner for her guests that evening. I liked the recipe Barbara sent me from Jackie’s book, but didn’t want to spend an hour simmering a whole pork loin, as the instructions direct, so what follows is my version of the recipe, loosely based on Jackie Eddy's original. If you enjoy this dish, I hope you’ll also try my Médaillons de Porc à la Crème (see my blog of April 16, 2011). 

Pork Tenderloin with Orange Sauce:

1 lean pork tenderloin, approximately 2 lb. or 900 kg

2 tbsp. butter or margarine

2 tbsp. green onion, finely chopped

3 tbsp. freshly grated orange rind, divided

⅔ c. orange juice

½ c. dry sherry (Yes! Half a cup! How divinely decadent!)

2 tbsp. granulated sugar

½ tsp. salt

Coarsely ground pepper, to taste (I like lots)

2 tsp. tapioca starch (I routinely use tapioca starch instead of cornstarch - no lumps!)

1 tbsp. cold water

Reserved grated orange rind, as garnish

Finely chopped parsley, as garnish
1 fresh orange, sliced into ⅜-in. rounds and halved, as garnish

Slice tenderloin crosswise into 1/2-inch rounds, pounding flat with a heavy mallet. With heat set on “high,” melt butter in large skillet, swirling in pan above element so it doesn’t burn. Add meat, searing on both sides to seal in juices. Remove meat from pan and set side. Using the same unwashed pan, sauté onion in butter until tender and translucent.  Add 1 tbsp. of the orange rind, juice, sherry (at this point, Lorna joined me in the kitchen, cackling!), sugar, salt, and pepper. Return the meat to the pan. Cover and simmer slowly 10 min., or until tender, turning occasionally. Transfer the meat to a hot platter, covering to keep warm. Combine tapioca starch and water to make a paste. Gradually stir into orange mixture and bring to a boil. Lower heat, continuing to stir 1-to-2 min. or until clear. Pour sauce over meat, sprinkling with reserved orange rind and parsley. Poke halved orange slices under meat, around the platter’s edge. Serve immediately. Serves 4.

Slice tenderloin into rounds

Sear at high heat

Whoops! Too much sherry ... too much fun!

Spoon sauce over! Garnish with orange peel and parsley