food thread! $20 pork tenderloin with veggies and a beef broth reduction

[ac427cpe]

So I haven’t done one of these in quite a while… but with Valentine’s Day looming, thought it might be helpful for a few people 

Today’s cooking yummy is roasted pork tenderloin with beef broth and bacon reduction. For about 20 bucks.

First find the needed ingredients and utensils.

2 or 3 lb pork loin
Olive oil
Salt and pepper
1 lb bacon
1 yellow onion
2 potatoes
Some carrots
1 can beef broth
Minced garlic
Beer (if you’re old enough)
This cost me $17.37 at my local supermarket. Prices may vary (some stuff was on sale).



Also needed

Large skillet
Small(ish) pot
Oven safe pan
Knife for veggies (or multiple knives, I like a 3” santoku for veggies and a 7” slicer for everything else)
Now, on to the cooking!



Part one: Chopping veggies!

Remember to slice the onion and potatoes kinda thin.


Carrots are up to you, they taste great no matter what.




Part 2: Prep the loin (and oven)

Pre heat oven to 400 degrees F

Use 3 or 4 tbsp olive oil on the loin, make sure it’s distributed evenly.

Sear over medium-high heat till brown (2-4 min per side),
put in oven pan


Add veggies + salt + pepper (only use half the onions)

Cover in tin foil and stuff in the oven.

It usually takes 20min/lb to cook a pork loin. The rule is that it must be 160 degrees F on the inside.

Part 3: intermission

Clean up the mess you have no doubt made. Have a beer. Etc.

Part 4: the sauce

Take that bacon and slice it into ½” pieces.


Have your lovely assistant/significant other cook the bacon. It’s messy. And usually burns of oil.

Easiest way: med heat + bacon till crispy. Then put on a plate w/ paper towels to soak up the grease/oil. Do not pour bacon grease in sink. Or in the trash. Or onto the cat.

The real reason to have someone else do the bacon: so you can start on the beef broth reduction.
Put 2 cups (about 1 can) broth into the small pan. Heat till it boils. When half has boiled away, you are done with the reduction. It’s not as hard as those cooking shows make it seem.

Once the bacon is done, use some of the bacon grease to sautee the onions. Stir on med-high heat for 2-3 min, add 1 tbsp garlic, stir for one more minute.


Bring this mess to a boil and reduce it by half again.

Stir in the bacon.

You now have an awesome sauce for the tenderloin.


Part 5: putting it all together

The loin should be done now. Get it out of the oven.


I decided to add another veggie and steamed some asparagus spears.


Remove the loin from the tray and cut into 1/2” slices.


Put the cooked veggies on a plate



Put everything else on a plate


oh yeah, that's a potato roll.

Serve and Enjoy!

[turtlecrxsi]

That looks really good. I'm not so sure a bacon gravy would be such a wise idea with my lethal diabetes medication though. I will definitely try making a pork roast similar to this in the near future with perhaps a homemade apple herb romalade/gravy/sauce... Thanks.

['97ventureowner]

Have you considered switching to Turkey bacon? It's awesome, way less fat, cooks quicker, and less expensive. I use it exclusively now in many of my dishes such as BLTs, Broccoli Salad,and others which call for 'bacon'. My whole family loves it and it's the only bacon they'll eat. If you have an Aldis grocery in your area I know they carry it all the time.

[ac427cpe]

this was more of a "got what was on sale" thing :P in retrospect, i probably wouldn't even use bacon and probably make the sauce more like a gravy.

[jon@af]

I...I love you...Dan.

Seriously.

[Toksin]

That looks amazing, even if I don't like pork. (Plus it doesn't hold a candle to my Epic Breakfast™ ) Bacon's good though. You just wanted to show Been off and try out the camera at the same time though, didn't you?

[GForce957]

Awesome stuff! We should have more of these, wasn't the last one the Epic Breakfast Toksin did, and that was like a year ago. I would do one of mine, but it mainly consists of unwrapping and placing in microwave

[Toksin]

Year and a half ago, actually

[freakray]

Can we have more photos of the assistant please.

[fredjacksonsan]

Originally Posted by freakray

Can we have more photos of the assistant please.

Leg humper.

[freakray]

Originally Posted by fredjacksonsan

Leg humper.

How so?

[fredjacksonsan]

Originally Posted by freakray

How so?

Oh, sorry, you said "assistant", not "cute chick in chef's outfit".

My apologies.













you leg humper.

[00accord44]

Ooohh I like. I have a few cooking posts of my own but they're far less sophisticated. I'll find them shortly fo any interested

[Oz]

A year and a half since the Epic Breakfast - and I remember it like it was yesterday in all it's baked bean goodness....


Thanks for posting that, looks like a tasty meal, I might just have to give it a spin some time.

[00accord44]

And here they are. The complete Cookin with 00 series (so far)


Cookin with 00 part 1

Originally Posted by 00accord44

Hungry??? Why wait...



Be sure to season accordingly. You can get a pack of McCormick burrito seasoning for like 50 cent














(add a lil butter to the pan for a nice golden color)



The perfect handheld meal


Now go forth and never be hungry again!

...Cookin with 00 part 1.5 if you will

Originally Posted by 00accord44

Relationships can be the shit and they can quickly become the shitty. I wish I had some of my exes back until I remember why they became exes. Plus being single allows me the free time to create mammoth burritos

Cookin with 00 Part 2

Originally Posted by 00accord44

And now another installment of

Cookin with 00

Buffalo Chicken Bacon Wrap

You'll need

Chicken (tenders or breasts cut into strips)
Buffalo Wing mix with an oven roasting bag (McCormick is good)




Bacon
I normally eat pork bacon from a skillet, but for the wraps, turkey bacon in the microwave gets the perfect crispiness without any grease to ruin the chicken flavor




Tortillas
Lettuce




Swiss cheese (or preferred variety)
I couldn't find shredded swiss so I had to shred it myself




Blue Cheese or Ranch dressing




Layer as follows: Tortilla, Lettuce, Swiss, Chicken, Bacon, Dressing (not pictured)




Wrap and annihilate (spreading a little dressing along the fold helps keep it closed)




Extra Tip: if you want a little extra kick, pour some of the buffalo sauce over the chicken and/or upgrade to the "Hot" mix

Cookin with 00 Part 3

Originally Posted by 00accord44

and now another installment of...

Cookin with 00
Taco Casserole

You need:

Noodles - shape of your choosing, I like large shells




Ground beef or turkey (I used 2 lbs turkey) - turkey works better because of the grease factor
(I also include a chopped half onion and a full green pepper)




Flavoring - I like the spicy taco flavor, feel free to use your own mix




Cheese - Colby Jack (slice your own or buy pre-sliced) - 4 Cheese Mexican (shredded) - Cheddar Jack (shredded)






Cheddar Soup - optional, used to moisturize noodles during baking




Tomato Sauce





Boil the noodles of course






Mix in the noodles, sauce, meat, shredded cheese, cheese soup




After its all mixed in, pour it into a baking pan. I've never greased/buttered/sprayed the pan and I've never had a problem.

Next lay your colby jack on top




Throw it in the hot box on 425 for about 35 min or until the cheese is melted to your liking.
***Do NOT forget to drain your meat or the grease will rise to the top and ruin the finish on your cheese. In all my picture taking, I forgot ***

Thats sauce on the top of the round dish, not grease. The sauce to noodle ratio was off in that small dish and the sauce had nowhere to go but up. Asthetic flaws, but the taste is the same

A "Special" Cookin with 00

Originally Posted by 00accord44

Cookin with 00

***Special New Years Episode***

You'll need:

-To live above the Mason-Dixon







...what's that buried in the snow???






sometimes having crap weather isn't so bad

Cookin with 00 Part 3

Originally Posted by 00accord44

Cookin with 00

Holiday Poultry Pocket

You'll need


Don Antonio's flour tortillas (a staple ingredient of Cookin with 00)




Cheese




Leftover holiday poultry. I will be using the last of our turkey. Pull it into strips and pop it in the nuker for about 1.5 min




Sauce. I usually use Ranch but I decided to test BBQ this time

****I also usually have chopped green and/or yellow peppers, but this is the low budget quickie version****

Now just layer your cheese and turkey to your liking. I reccommend cheese-turkey-cheese-turkey-cheese




Then melt a lil butter in a skillet and toss that mamoth beast in there on medium flame








Now cut it up and attempt to finish the whole thing (me and sis couldn't)

Cookin with 00 Part 4 (my personal favorite)

Originally Posted by 00accord44

and now...

Cookin with 00
Mexican Chop
**Inspired by Chubby's Chicken Fingers in Tallahasse, FL**

*****You should probably cut my portions in half if you don't want leftovers or if you aren't a total glutton*****

You'll need:

Boneless chicken breasts cut into half dollar sized pieces (I use 3 lbs)
My preferred mode of marination is honey muustard, spicy brown mustard, and lemon pepper left to sit overnight in the fridge. You do what you want.





Yellow Rice - 2 packs (I prefer Vigo)





Diced tomatoes





Mexican cheese blend





Shredded lettuce







Not many steps here:

Fry the chicken
I reccommend you add flour (or pancake batter) to your marinade, mix it to coat the chicken, and put the whole thing in the fridge to help the flour bond to the chicken. If you've never fried chicken before, it may take some time to perfect your technique. The way I set the flame on my stove, the chicken cooks in about 3 minutes. I've found that any longer than that dries the meat out, and any shorter may leave the chicken pink inside. Do NOT get scared of the oil and drop the chicken from a distance because you are guaranteed to get burnt that way.




Cook the rice (instructions on the bag)

Add your DEGREASED chicken bites to the rice. I just transfer my chicken from the oil into a paper towel lined bowl to soak up excess grease and then put it with the rice in a sealable container.

Keep the lettuce and tomatoes separate from the rice and chicken so you can reheat the chicken without having soggy nasty veggies. All of course should be kept sealed and refrigerated.

Mix it all together and add your own preferred sauce. I like honey mustard, I used my mom's Newman's Light Honey Mustard since I forgot to pick up my usual stuff at the store.

It doesn't look lke much chicken in this pic but believe me, my chicken to rice ratio is ridiculous.

Cookin with 00 Part 5 (I made this same menu plus mashed potates just last night)

Originally Posted by 00accord44

and finally...

Cookin with 00
Soul Food Edition

You'll need

Macaroni shells



Cheese (sharp cheddar plus whatever other variety you choose to add)




Butter (2-3 tbsp)



Cheese Soup (I like to use broccoli cheese)

*****

Chicken (thawed of course) - I let mine marinate overnight in spicy brown mustard, lemon pepper, and some cayenne pepper



Oil (canola / vegeable/ peanut)



Flour



Milk

I forgot to take a picture of milk.... I think we all know what it looks like


Macaroni (I didn't have a working camera during macaroni prep so use your friggin imaination)
I suggest starting the macaroni before the chicken because your hands will be messy once you start putting the chicken in its batter. Preheat the oven to 400

Boil your water and prepare your noodles. Mix in your butter and canned cheese soup while the noodles are still hot. In the mean time, boil up 1-2 cups of milk and mix it with your shredded cheese. The more milk you add, the more moist your final dish will be... but don't go overboard cause nobody lkes soggy mac-n-cheese.

Once your milk/cheese mix is pretty even you can add it to the noodles. I also recommend 2-3 tsp of salt for personal preference. Then pour it into a baking dish and toss it in the oven. If you're not a fan of oven-crisped noodles, then add a thin layer of shredded cheese on top to keep that top layer of noodles from browning too much.


Chicken (I had no camera during most of chicken prep either...sorry)
Take two small bowls or containers and add milk to one, flour to the other. Season the flour however you want the skin to taste. I use lemon pepper, black pepper, some garlic powder, and a little cayenne(-sp?). Take your marinated chicken, dip it in the milk, then roll it in the flour. Your fingers are guaranteed to become a mess with caked up batter in this process so if you have anything else going on that you need to get your hands on, I suggest you stay near the sink to wash off.

Once you have batered all the pieces, put it back in the fridge for at least 15 minutes. This helps adhere the batter to the skin and chicken. If you skip the fridge most of your batter will come off in the hot oil. Get as much flour covering the chicken as you want.



Get you oil heated on low-med flame. After the chicken has set with the batter, you're ready to fry. Of course be careful not to drop the chicken into the oil

Ideally, you only want to turn your chicken once so that the skin and batter stay on and the meat gets cooked evenly all the way to the bone. If you notice the skin is browning to quickly then adjust your heat accordingly. In my experience, 20 min in the first side then 10 on the other is pretty good. It may be different depending on your stove, pan size, chicken size etc.

*****

By the time your first batch of chicken is done (I had two batches) your macaroni should be browned and ready to take out. Get it as brown as you wish on top. The inside will be moist from the soup and milk.





And tomorrow I will be making some fried macaroni strips. From what I understand the macaroni needs to be refrigerated for it to work.

opcorn:

...and what 00 food-related post would be complete without a link to The Mayo Thread Dammit I love mayo so much