Herb-Marinated Pork Tenderloin

One of my favorite grocery stores is Trader Joes. Not only are their prices AMAZING, but the food is INCREDIBLE. Unfortunately, we don't have one close to where we live. So, when I do have time to drive to Trader Joe's I stock up on all the essentials. A couple weeks ago I came across pork tenderloin for under $5.00. When I bought it I had no idea what I would do with it, so I put it in the freezer for a rainy day. Well, that rainy day became a snowy evening. I came across a recipe for a marinade in one of Ina Gartens cookbooks.If you're looking for a quick meal that is not only inexpensive, but yummy, then this meal is for you. The night before I wanted to eat the pork I placed the meat and marinade in a large freezer bag and left it in the frig over night. Then when we came home from work all we had to do was throw the meat on the grill for 15 minutes and prepare a couple sides. BAM!! You have a great meal in less than 20 minutes.

The recipe calls for three pork tenderloins. Since it's just Chris and I we only prepared one pork tenderloin.

Herb-Marinated Pork Tenderloins
Ina Garten

Prep Time: 10 min
Cook Time: 15 min
6 servings

Ingredients
1 lemon, zest grated
3/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (4 to 6 lemons)
Good olive oil
2 tablespoons minced garlic (6 cloves)
1 1/2 tablespoons minced fresh rosemary leaves
1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme leaves
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
Kosher salt
3 pork tenderloins (about 1 pound each)
Freshly ground black pepper

Directions
Combine the lemon zest, lemon juice, 1/2 cup olive oil, garlic, rosemary, thyme, mustard, and 2 teaspoons salt in a sturdy 1-gallon resealable plastic bag. Add the pork tenderloins and turn to coat with the marinade. Squeeze out the air and seal the bag. Marinate the pork in the refrigerator for at least 3 hours but preferably overnight.
You can either cook the meat in the oven or on the grill. I prefer to use the grill, but if you don't have a grill than the oven is just as good.

Grill:
When you're ready to cook, build a charcoal fire or heat a gas grill. Brush the cooking grate with oil to prevent the pork from sticking. Remove the tenderloins from the marinade and discard the marinade but leave the herbs that cling to the meat. Sprinkle the tenderloins generously with salt and pepper. Grill the tenderloins, turning a few times to brown on all sides, for 15-25 minutes (depending on the heat of the coals) until the meat registers 137 degrees at the thickest part. Transfer the tenderloins to a platter and cover tightly with aluminum foil. Allow to rest for 10 minutes. Carve in 1/2-inch-thick diagonal slices. The thickest part of the tenderloin will be quite pink (it's just fine!) and the thinnest part will be well done. Season with salt and pepper and serve warm, or at room temperature with the juices that collect in the platter.

Oven:
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Remove the tenderloins from the marinade and discard the marinade but leave the herbs that cling to the meat. Sprinkle the tenderloins generously with salt and pepper. Heat 3 tablespoons olive oil in a large oven-proof saute pan over medium-high heat. Sear the pork tenderloins on all sides until golden brown. Place the saute pan in the oven and roe tast the tenderloins for 10 to 15 minutes or until the meat registers 137 degrees F at the thickest part. Transfer the tenderloins to a platter and cover tightly with aluminum foil. Allow to rest for 10 minutes. Carve in 1/2-inch-thick diagonal slices. The thickest part of the tenderloin will be quite pink (it's just fine!) and the thinnest part will be well done. Season with salt and pepper and serve warm, or at room temperature with the juices that collect in the platter.
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If you're like me than you work long hours and don't want to spend your entire night cooking. Well, the food industry has helped us out tremendously, by providing us with nutritious meals in our freezer section. Here are a couple of those sides that Chris and I love.

We love the saffron yellow rice. Not only is it extremely yummy, but it's very inexpensive.

We have fallen in LOVE with the Birds Eye Steamfresh products. Not only do they only take a couple minutes in the microwave, but they taste really great. Also, there are always coupons for them in our Sunday paper. :)