Pork Tenderloin with Whisky-Marmalade Sauce

I have made this at least 3 times now and have added it to our list of "go-to" recipes because it uses ingredients we always have on hand.

Pork tenderloins have been part of our repertoire for a long time, but until now, I have never thought about slicing them into medallions to speed up the process.

I am becoming a fan of making sauces, and this is a good one.

Pork Medallions with Whiskey-Marmalade Sauce
(from Fine Cooking, Feb/March 2018)

Serves 4

1/4 cup orange marmalade
1/4 cup fresh orange juice
4 t. fresh lemon juice, plus more to taste
1 t. dry mustard
2 t.  vegetable oil
1 1/4 lb. pork tenderloin, trimmed and cut cross-wise into 1 - inch - thick medallions
salt and pepper to taste
1 T. unsalted butter
2 T. finely chopped shallot
pinch crushed red pepper flakes
3 T. Scotch whiskey (like Dewar's or Cutty Sark or Johnny Walker)
1/4 t. cornstarch
1 T. water

In a small bowl, combine the marmalade, orange juice, lemon juice and mustard, set aside.

I recommend that you chop your shallot, get your red pepper flakes ready, measure out the whiskey and make the cornstarch slurry ahead of time, i.e., now.

Also, I recommend that you remove the pork tenderloin from the grocery store packaging well in advance of cooking it, and pat it dry, and remove any silver skin.  The drier the meat the better for pan-frying.  Slice the pork into 1" medallions and season it just before pan-frying.

Heat the oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat.  Season the pork generously with salt and pepper, then cook, flipping once, until golden brown on both sides, and just barely cooked through, about 5 minutes.  Transfer to plate.  (I put my plate in the oven on 200 degrees to keep them warm.)

Add the butter, shallot, and pepper flakes to the skillet, and let cook, stirring, until the shallot is tender, about 1 minute.  Add the whiskey and cook, stirring, until nearly evaporated, about 30 seconds.  Stir in the marmalade mixture and bring to a boil.

Meanwhile, combine the cornstarch and 1 T. water in a small dish.  Stir this slurry into the sauce, and simmer until slightly thickened.  Season to taste with salt and pepper and more lemon juice if needed.

Stir in the pork juices that have collected on the plate into the sauce.  Put the medallions back into the sauce to coat them evenly, then serve, drizzled with the extra sauce.

This time we served it with rice and sauteed green beans.

B