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Balsamic-Garlic Crusted Pork Tenderloin

Know what I like about pork tenderloin?
You can make it fancy, or you can keep it simple.  You can slice it and put it on a platter and serve it as a nice sit-down dinner, or you can slice it and throw it on a roll and serve a platter of casual sandwiches.  It's usually reasonably priced, and you can often find it on sale.  It's a great main dish for feeding a crowd, too.  Over the holidays, I had a dinner and we grilled six tenderloins.  Once again, I found a keeper on Pinterest - seriously, I never should have started with that, but anyway....  Here's the original post, to give credit to the artist.


Balsamic-Garlic Crusted Pork Tenderloins

4-5 garlic cloves, finely minced or crushed
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar (I might up this a bit.... we drizzled the cooked meat with more)
2 1/2 teaspoons coarse salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 pork tenderloins (about 1¼ pounds each)
2 tablespoons canola oil (if preparing in oven)

Stir together garlic, balsamic vinegar, salt, pepper, and olive oil in a small bowl. Rub the paste all over pork, and marinate overnight, or as long as you can before cooking.

Freezer Meal prep:
(Kind of obvious, but just to make it official...) Complete the steps above, and then freeze in a Ziploc bag.  Thaw in fridge, then prepare on the grill or in the oven.  You COULD brown it, and then put both loins in a foil pan, cover with foil, and freeze that way, if you want to make it an oven meal.  For me, that's too much fuss.

Grill prep:
Sear the tenderloins on all sides, then grill for about 20-30 minutes, rotating every 10 minutes, until the internal temperature is 160 degrees. Tent with foil and let the meat rest before slicing - it's worth the wait.

Oven prep:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Heat canola oil in a large, heavy saute pan over medium-high heat.  Working in batches if necessary, add pork, and brown all over, about 4 minutes.  Transfer pan to oven. Roast pork, turning occasionally, until the internal temperature is 160 degrees, about 20 minutes. Transfer pork to a cutting board, and try to let it rest 10 minutes before slicing.

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