So, it's Tuesday, just me and the girlie - and I have the makings for some type of pork tenderloin. If this is you - looking to cook up something cheap, quick and small (think dinner for 2) - then you have to try French Onion Pork Medallions!
I had made this one time before with the actual pork chops that the original recipe called for - and don't get me wrong, they were good. But the mass availability of the juicier and more tender pork tenderloin has swayed me away from the traditional chop. If you are a pork chop fan, then by all means, substitute! But I think you will find that cutting a pork tenderloin into chunky medallions will be a better choice for this meal.
The medallions are small, and so preheating the oven to 325º and using that temp to bake allows them to cook through a bit slower and therefore retaining some juice and some tenderness. While the oven preheats -this is a great time to practice your mise en place - everything in its place! The pork needs to be rubbed down with Dijon mustard and seasoned with salt and pepper. We're garlic crazy over here, so I also hit them with a shake of garlic powder. Then I cut up the sweet onion...
Now, I'm not sure what type of crazy person wrote the original recipe, but it called for FOUR sweet onions - the photo above is one, and unless you plan on taking down an army of ogres with your breathe, I'd suggest that one is probably enough. It needs to be caramelized with oil and butter - and I added some dried thyme, but we'll cover that in a bit.
First, the medallions need to be cooked in the preheated skillet for just a few minutes per side - about 3 minutes, give or take. They won't cook through with this brief hit to the heat, but that's fine - you don't want them to. They need to finish in the oven. What you are doing here is just giving them a little outer crust and some color.
I took a video of this process to show you that meat, cooked in a well seasoned cast iron skillet, does not need oils or fats. After a few minutes, the meat will release on its own from the pan. To get the video, I turned off my high powered exhaust fan - you know, so you could all hear the sizzle...
And well... I sort of set off the smoke alarm. Note to you all - keep your exhaust fan on! We could have had the authorities here - but luckily, I was able to squelch the alarm before it went full tilt!
But... back to the pork. Once they've reached the browned, crusty state, take them out, remove them to a plate and keep warm.
Spices like thyme just smell homey - and so when they heat up, they bring about all the feels of a homecooked meal. At this point, the onion, oil, butter and thyme go into the skillet. I've done this recipe with fresh thyme sprigs and it is easy to pull them out later, but tonight I just added a generous amount of dried thyme and let it roll. The results are always great!
There's a few recipes I make that when they get cooking, they really smell like I know what I am doing - this is one of them. People will come pouring in from other rooms, spewing the classic, "What are you cooking?"
At this point, broth and red wine can be added, scraping up any brown bits that may be stuck to your skillet. The cooking is largely done at this point and so it's at the stage where we just put it all together.
The pork gets placed over the onions and the entire skillet goes into the oven for 20-25 minutes or so. This gives you time to get your sides together, set the table, check your Facebook - I don't know - sip your wine. You decide. You are close to the finish line and it'll be amazing!
The final step is to take the skillet out of the oven when the pork is done and cover all of the medallions with shredded Swiss or Gruyere cheese. The skillet goes back into the oven for 5 or so minutes - just long enough to melt the cheese - and then it's ready to serve!
We chose corn and noodles on the side tonight because it was fast - but feel free to pair it with whatever sounds good to you. I guarantee that these French Onion Pork Medallions will become a regular meal on your dinner rotation!
Comments