Pork Tenderloin with Corn, Peaches And Lime

Pork Tenderloin with Corn, Peaches And Lime

In this juicy and colorful skillet dinner inspired by lemongrass grilled pork, tenderloin roasts alongside corn kernels, which then get tossed with sweet peaches and crunchy cucumbers. The whole dish is tied together by the lime and fish sauce dressing, which is reminiscent of nuoc cham, and is used twice: as a coating on the pork to develop a caramelized crust, and to dress the salad. Accompany the dish with lettuces, rice noodles, rice, soft herbs or a combination. Leftovers are wonderful at room temperature.

Yield: 2 to 3 servings

¼ cup lime juice (from 2 limes)

2 tablespoons brown sugar

2 tablespoons fish sauce

2 to 3 bird’s eye or serrano chiles, thinly sliced

1 pork tenderloin (about 1 pound), silver skin removed (see Tip), meat halved crosswise and patted dry

2 tablespoons neutral oil, such as avocado or grapeseed

2 cups corn kernels (from 2 ears, or frozen and unthawed)

2 firm peaches

2 Persian or mini seedless cucumbers

½ red onion

Salt

Heat the oven to 400 degrees. In a large bowl, stir together the lime juice, brown sugar, fish sauce and chile until the sugar dissolves. Coat the tenderloin with 1 tablespoon of the sauce, rubbing to coat. Set the rest aside.

In a large cast-iron skillet over medium-high, heat 1 tablespoon oil. Add the pork and cook until browned all over, 6 to 8 minutes. Turn off the heat, then add the remaining tablespoon oil and the corn. Stir to coat. Transfer the skillet to the oven and roast until the corn is tender and a thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the pork registers 140 degrees, 10 to 14 minutes. (The pork will continue to cook as it rests.)

Meanwhile, thinly slice the peaches, cucumbers and red onion.

Transfer the pork to a cutting board to rest for at least 5 minutes, then thinly slice and season the cut sides lightly with salt. Transfer the corn, peaches, cucumbers and red onion to the bowl of sauce. Stir to combine and season to taste with salt. Serve the pork topped with salad and all of the sauce. 

Tip: To remove the silver skin, a tough connective tissue, without cutting off too much meat, locate the white, shiny membrane and insert your knife at one edge of the silver skin to cut between the skin and the meat, creating a flap to hold onto. Pulling the flap of silver skin tight with your nondominant hand, continue to slice along the length of the skin until you’ve removed and released all the silver skin.

* With it in the 90’s, I opted to grill this. Seared the pork over hot coals, then put in a cast iron pan over indirect heat. Added the corn and peppers.

I halved the peaches, grilled them for a few minutes over hot coals. Let cool then sliced and added to the onion and cucumbers.

Served over greens from the garden. Peaches from the garden as well.

Very good. I make this same dressing and reduce it by half, then use as a baste for salmon, chicken, pork, and tofu.