Caramel Pork

I tried a new recipe last night. I know. Shocker. It only happens like every week. What can I say? I get bored with eating the same food, no matter how good.

I love the magazine Cooking Light. Check out their recipe index here. I don't have a subscription yet, so I go there, especially if I saw something good in it in the grocery check-out line while browsing. All of their recipes and all of Southern Living recipes and from other magazines are collaborated at MyRecipes.com. I love how they provide the nutritional information(by the way, this one only has 300 calories). And the recipes from Cooking Light are usually...well...light. They also have video on how to make certain featured recipes which is helpful.

We love pork tenderloin because it's lean and tender and there are countless things to do with it. I try to stock up on a few when they are BOGO at Harris Teeter. That makes it fit any budget. Then, I trim the fat, wrap it in siran wrap(squeezing out the air) and place it in a freezer bag. Date it with a sharpie and freeze. Never freeze meat in the original packaging. That's a recipe for freezer burnt meat(not tasty).

Last night we had this(my veggies were not as pretty):



















It's called Caramel Pork. You can click on that link for the original recipe. There is also a video.

I made a few changes. I took the suggestions of one commenter, that the pork got overcooked while waiting for the sauce to thicken. They suggested removing the pork when it was done, and then returning it to the pan when the sauce was ready.

I have most of the ingredients on hand all the time, except for some fresh stuff like ginger(yes, you need to buy fresh ginger. There is a huge difference in taste, as with herbs, except ginger keeps a lot longer). Don't skip the rice vinegar and lime either. Come on! This is where all the flavor is!

Some other changes:
I cut the pork up into large bite sizes, not giant pieces like in the video.
I only had regular brown sugar not dark.
I was not about to put anchovies in it.
Instead of peas in the rice, I made ginger carrots and green beans.

And after eating it, there is only one thing I would do differently: less red pepper. I'm a wimp, but it was a little too spicy for me. I had ground red pepper instead of crushed, so it might be more concentrated, but I didn't think I added a lot(I didn't measure).

Matt said he could smell the sauce cooking before he even came in the house. It smelled really good and the taste lived up to the smell. I will definitely be saving this one. It's a must repeat.

Ingredients

• 1 cup water
• 3/4 cup uncooked sushi or short-grain rice
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, divided
• 1/2 cup frozen green peas, thawed
• 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
• Cooking spray
• 1 pound pork tenderloin, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1/2 cup chopped Vidalia or other sweet onion
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/2 cup fat-free, lower-sodium chicken broth
• 3 tablespoons dark brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon lower-sodium soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon bottled ground fresh ginger
• 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
• 2 canned anchovy fillets, rinsed and minced
• 8 lime wedges

Preparation

1. Combine 1 cup water, rice, and 1/4 teaspoon salt in a small saucepan; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 15 minutes; remove from heat. Let stand 10 minutes; gently stir in peas and vinegar.

2. Heat a medium skillet over high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add pork; sauté 5 minutes. Sprinkle with 1/4 teaspoon salt.

3. Add onion and garlic; stir-fry 2 minutes. Stir in broth and next 5 ingredients (through anchovy); bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer 5 minutes or until slightly thick. Spoon 1/2 cup rice on each of 4 plates; top each serving with 1/2 cup pork mixture. Serve with lime wedges.