Pages

Tuesday, January 15, 2013

Island Spice Pork Tenderloin with Mango Avocado Salsa

I would never lead you astray when it comes to a delicious meal.

This is a delicious meal!  As a matter of fact, it is one of my favorites!


As a side note, I like to put chalkboard paint on anything that is holding still.

For starters, make the Mango Avocado Salsa.  Avocados are, apparently, the world's healthiest food at the moment.  I feel like I should be eating 5 a day...smothered with coconut oil, drizzled with dark chocolate, and sprinkled with chia seeds and quinoa.  Then I would be the healthiest person...ever!  ;)

Before I give you the recipe, let's have a little talk about how to pick an avocado!  An Aldi employee told me this trick years ago, and it's a winner!

Pick off that little nub on the end and see what color it is under there.


If it is nice and creamy green, the inside will be nice and creamy green.  Mine was nice and creamy green when I got it, but it got a tad brown when it was sitting out.  

See!  Inner beauty...even in an avocado!


It's super easy to get the pit out when you whack a knife in there, as shown above.  Then you simply twist it and the pit comes right out.  Plus, you feel awesome whacking something with a knife.  Or, at least I do!

Then, I cut the avocado while it's still in the skin.  Be gentle when you do this as you don't want to cut your hand.


Then, you just scoop it out with a spoon, as you can see above.

Without further ado, here are the ingredients (aren't they pretty!):


1 mango, peeled and diced
1 avocado, peeled and diced
2 smallish roma tomatoes, seeded and diced
1 clove of garlic, minced
1/2 jalapeno, seeded and diced (I'm a wimp with spice, so you could add a whole one if you're brave)
1/4 cup chopped, fresh cilantro
Juice from one fresh lime
1/4 cup chopped red onion
1 tablespoon oil (canola or olive oil)
Salt and Pepper to taste

*I like to cut up the spicy, stinky things like jalapeno and onion first.  The acidity of the tomatoes and lime that you cut and squeeze after those things helps get rid of the stink.  I also cut the avocado last so it has less time to get brown.

Gently fold the ingredients together in a medium bowl.  Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

I like to make this in the morning and then have lunch with my little cuties.


Maggie wanted me to take her picture with her 15 M&Ms that she got for a treat after lunch!

Then, during nap time or whenever, get your spices together for Island Spice Pork Tenderloin.


1 teaspoon salt (I used the coarse, kosher variety.  I'd do a little less if using table salt)
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder

Combine the spices and pat them on trimmed pork tenderloin.

I was going to post a picture of what that looks like but decided not to as it just looked really gross...you're welcome :)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Heat 1 tablespoon of canola oil over medium high heat in an oven proof skillet.  When it's really hot, add the pork tenderloin.  Brown it on each side for about 4 minutes total...about 1 minute each side.  

If you are like me and don't have an oven proof skillet, simply cover the handle with a couple of layers of aluminum foil and it does the trick!

Pop the skillet in the oven and bake for about 20 minutes or until the pork reaches 140-150 degrees.  

Tent the skillet with foil for 10 minutes before slicing.

While the meat is resting, your daughter may pretend to ice skate on books on top of duplo blocks.  


Or maybe that's just my daughter.  I love love double love how creative and imaginative she is!

Back to the pork!  Look at that delicious spice crust...


Pull your Mango Avocado Salsa out of the refrigerator.


Top a few slices of pork tenderloin with a couple of spoonfuls of salsa.


So, so delicious!  I served it with brown rice (this is my favorite way to prepare it) and green beans for me and mandarin oranges for everyone else.

This is also the meal that keeps on giving!  The salsa is delicious with chips, plus it actually keeps really well in the fridge for a few days without getting brown.

I like to use the leftover rice and pork to make pork fried rice.  Just scramble an egg or two, add the rice with some powdered garlic and ginger and soy sauce to taste.  Stir in cubed pork and some thawed frozen peas or whatever other veggies you like.  Heat through.  It's not necessarily restaurant quality, but it's a nice way to use leftovers!

Make this for supper!  You won't regret it!

Here's where I got the recipes!  I adapted them a bit and decided to combine them, but I certainly didn't make them up on my own :)

No comments:

Post a Comment