Pork Tenderloin with Fresh Apple Salsa
Apple season has arrived! And while I consider pork in season all year long, it’s hard to find a more classic September pairing than pork roast with apples.
This pretty version, with a raw apple salsa spooned over grilled pork tenderloin, bridges summer-into-fall nicely. See if you can keep yourself from eating the salsa straight out of the bowl—as usual, I could not. And maybe I’m onto something, since I can imagine the salsa’s sweet-meets-heat crunch would make an addictive apple salad.
I suggest grilling the pork, but roasting would work just as well. If you’re lucky enough to have leftovers, slice the roast in thin slices, brown the slices in a bit of olive oil with a sprinkle of salt, then pile the slices atop a chickpea flour pancake. Top with salsa and silently thank me. You’re welcome in advance.
Pork Tenderloin with Fresh Apple Salsa
Adapted from a recipe by Heidi Swanson/101 Cookbooks
Serves 6
2 tart apples
4 Tbsp. lime juice
1 fresh jalapeño chile, halved, seeds removed, minced
1 fresh Anaheim chile, halved, seeds removed, minced
1/2 medium onion, finely chopped
handful of cilantro, roughly chopped
1/2 c. (2 oz.) walnuts, coarsely chopped and lightly toasted
2 Tbsp. peeled & grated fresh ginger
1/4 tsp. coarse salt + more for pork
2-1 1/4 lb. pork tenderloins
1 Tbsp. olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp. dried thyme
Preheat grill, preferably with one side of the grill hot, the other side cool (providing indirect heat).
Cut the applies from the cores, leaving the skins intact, and cut the fruit into 1/4-inch cubes. Toss the apple pieces with the lime juice. Add the rest of the ingredients and toss thoroughly. Add more salt if needed. Set aside.
In a small bowl, stir together olive oil, garlic, and thyme. Rub mixture over the two tenderloins. Sprinkle tenderloins generously with coarse salt. Set pork on the hot side of the grill and sear, about 4 minutes/side, to brown. Move pork to the cool side of the grill and finish cooking, another 5-10 minutes, until the thermometer inserted into thickest part of pork registers 145 degrees F. Let pork rest on a cutting board for 10 minutes. Serve with apple salsa.