she cooks…he cleans

We enjoyed the chicken satay so much last week, we decided to skewer some pork tenderloin!  The Lime-Curry marinade was wonderful with the pork tenderloin, adding multiple layers of spicy flavors to what tends to be a relatively bland-tasting cut of meat.  The recipe for this marinade was inspired by an Epicurious/Gourmet recipe, “Grilled Lime-Curry-Rubbed Hanger Steak with Fresh Melon-Cucumber Chutney“.  Incidentally, we have prepared that recipe a couple of times and it is wonderful.  The Melon-Cucumber Chutney would be great with the pork skewers also, but I didn’t have the ingredients on hand.  Next time I will!

Ingredients:

• 1 pork tenderloin
• juice from 2 limes
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 1/2 tablespoons sweet curry powder*
• 1/2 tablespoon hot curry powder*
• 2 teaspoons honey (or sweetener of choice)
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
• 2 tablespoons chopped cilantro (optional)

* The Spice House has a nice selection of curry blends.  Check it out here.

Butterfly the pork tenderloin to bring it all to a relatively even thickness.  (I did this in two parts:  first by cutting the tenderloin lengthwise about 3/4 of the way through into 2 joined sections.  Then slice about 3/4 through the center point of each of the 2 sections so that the meat opens up like a book.)  Cut the tenderloin, lengthwise, into long strips about an inch wide. Place the meat in a resealable bag or glass dish.

Puree the remaining ingredients in a small food processor or blender.  Pour the marinade over the pork strips and refrigerate for 2 to 6 hours.

When ready to grill, thread the pork onto the skewers.  Set up a grill for direct cooking at around 400F.  When coals are ready, grill the pork skewers for 3-4 minutes on each side.  Take them off the grill and garnish with chopped cilantro, if you wish.

We served these curried pork skewers with oven-roasted sweet potatoes.  Sweet potatoes are a great match for curried dishes because the flavors are so complementary.  Another good choice would be roasted or grilled cauliflower.  A mango chutney or the melon-cucumber chutney from Epicurious would also be a refreshing addition – and one that I will include next time I make this!

Enjoy!

First up, a new release (and band) from some long time favorites- the Tedeschi Trucks Band with Revelator. This would be Susan Tedeschi and husband Derek Trucks. Now I saw Derek play when he was around 12 or 13 years old- and he was jaw droppingly amazing then, and has only gotten better as a solo artist and as a member of the Allman Brothers. His wife sings with a soulful, bluesy style ala Bonnie Raitt. They’ve joined up and released a great album, very funky and blues filled. Love it!

And speaking of Bonnie Raitt, this first solo record might sound a bit raw to fans of her later, more pop-oriented material, but she’s the real deal. Great vocalist, brilliant slide guitarist, just great. Get funky people!