SPINACH AND ITALIAN SAUSAGE STUFFED PORK TENDERLOIN
I’d been toying with the idea of making a stuffed pork tenderloin like this for quite some time now. Pork, stuffed with pork, wrapped in even more pork. That’s like pork heaven to the 10th power! OH YEAH! To me, the concept sounded so insanely delicious, it almost had a bit of an indecent ring to it.
Did I ever tell you how much I LOVE my pork? Ever since I was a kid, I always said that if I had to choose only one kind of meat to eat for the rest of my life, it would HAVE to be pork. Without so much as a moment’s hesitation.
I find that, of all the meats, it is the most flavorful and the most versatile, too. It can be transformed into so many delicious things, like ham and sausage and BACON! Speaking of which, I just got my hands on a whole pork belly last week… You know what that means, right? Oh yeah! Some bacon making action will be happening soon right here, in this very house. I can’t even begin to tell you how excited I am about this.
Almost as excited as I am about this recipe which I am sharing with you today.
Now this may give the impression that it’s extremely complicated and takes forever to make, but trust me, it’s not the case at all. It is surprisingly easy and I’d even say is a very fun and rewarding cooking project to tackle.
Plus, I’m giving you tons of pictures to guide you and make it real simple.
I’ll give it to you, though. Perhaps this is not your typical quick and easy work-night dinner, but it makes for a fabulous week-end family night feast, and believe me when I say that it’s worth EVERY SINGLE MINUTE you will spend working on it… and then some.
So are you ready? Let’s do this guys… one step at a time!
Melt 1 tablespoon of ghee in a large skillet set over medium heat. Add onion, salt and pepper and cook until the onion turns translucent, about 3-5 minutes.
Add a MOUNTAIN of chopped spinach to the skillet. Yes, this may seem like a lot, but you all know what happens to spinach when it cooks, right?
It wilts and goes down to merely nothing! So cook your spinach until it gets to that point, which will not take long at all…
Then transfer your spinach to a fine mesh sieve and set it to cool for a few minutes.
Meanwhile, return your skillet to the heat source and melt the remaining tablespoon of ghee. Add the mushrooms and cook until softened and golden, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside to cool.
Now, you want to squeeze as much water as you possibly can out of the spinach. I like to do that by pushing it down with a small plate or the back of a ladle.
See all the liquid that’s coming out? Make sure you get every last little drop. And that leaves you with yet even less spinach to work with! But that’s okay. We still have plenty!
Now slice your tenderloins open. To do that, place the blade of your knife parallel to your cutting board, put your hand flat on top of the tenderloin and carefully slice down the middle almost all the way to the end.
You’ll want to stop about ¾ of the way through.…and, with a meat mallet or small saucepan, delicately pound them until they’re about ½ inch thick.
Ahem, and no comment, okay? Trust me, I know I could NEVER make it as a butcher…
Sprinkle your now flat tenderloins with salt and pepper, then divide the sausage meat between both tenderloins and spread as evenly as possible without going all the way to the edge; you want to leave about one inch all around and even a little bit more on the side where the seam will be.
Top with spinach mixture, followed with mushrooms.
Roll the tenderloins as tightly as you can, taking care to place the seam underneath, then carefully wrap each of them with the bacon strips.
5 or 6 strips per tenderloin should do the trick. Simply go around in circles…
Transfer your now wrapped and stuffed pork tenderloins to an oven safe baking dish. This will go in the oven for a total of about an hour.
Once it’s done cooking, you’ll want to let the meat rest for 10-15 minutes before slicing. So you might want to plan on getting these babies started about 2 hours ahead of time.
30 minutes to prep
60 minutes to cook
15 minutes to rest
Not sooooo bad, is it? Plus, it’s mainly only passive work…
Even if you don’t have a big family to feed, you can very well make the extra roast, pre-slice it and keep it in the fridge for quick and easy access to a delicious meal all through the week. Did I tell you how amazingly good this was for breakfast, alongside pan-fried cauli-rice, some sauerkraut and fresh avocado? It would work wonderfully with a couple of eggs, too.
How could your day ever go wrong after it’s started so brilliantly? But if meat for breakfast isn’t your thing, feel free to end your day with this one instead. It’ll be just as brilliant!
PREPARATION
Preheat oven to 375F
Melt 1 tablespoon of ghee in a large skillet set over medium heat. Add onion, salt and pepper and cook until the onion turns translucent, about 3-5 minutes.
Add chopped spinach and cook until just wilted. Transfer the cooked spinach to a fine mesh sieve and set it to cool for a few minutes.
Meanwhile, return your skillet to the heat source and melt the remaining tablespoon of ghee. Add the mushrooms and cook until softened and golden, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside to cool.
Squeeze as much water as you possibly can out of the spinach by pushing it down in the sieve with a small plate or the back of a ladle. Set aside.
Now slice your tenderloins open. To do that, place the blade of your knife parallel to your cutting board, put your hand flat on top of the tenderloin and carefully slice down the middle almost all the way to the end. You’ll want to stop about ¾ of the way through.
Lay the tenderloins open on a cutting board and, with a meat mallet or small saucepan, delicately pound them until they’re about ½ inch thick.
Place your now flat tenderloins on your cutting board, sprinkle with salt and pepper, then divide and spread the sausage meat on both tenderloins, as evenly as possible but without going all the way to the edge; you want to leave about one inch all around. Top with spinach mixture, followed with mushrooms.
Roll the tenderloins as tightly as you can, taking care to place the seam underneath, then carefully wrap each of them with the bacon strips by simply going around. You should need 5 or 6 strips per tenderloin.
Transfer your wrapped pork to an oven safe baking dish, cover with aluminum foil and bake in a 375F oven for 35-40 minutes.
Remove foil and continue cooking for 20-25 minutes, basting 2-3 times during that period.
Set your oven to broil and finish crisping up the bacon, which should take anywhere from 3 to 5 minutes. Keep a close eye on the prize, during that time: you wouldn’t want your precious bundles to burn!
Remove from oven, tent loosely and let the meat rest for 10-15 minutes before slicing.
INGREDIENTS
1-2 tbsp ghee
1 large onion, chopped
454g (1lb) spinach, chopped
¼ tsp Himalayan salt
¼ tsp freshly cracked black pepper
½lb mushrooms, chopped
2 -454g (1lb) pork tenderloins
3 spicy Italian sausages, removed from casing
10-12 slices pasture raised bacon
NUTRITION INFORMATION
Serving Size: 1 (286 g) Servings Per Recipe: 8
Calories 308.1 Calories from Fat 134 56% Total Fat 14.9 g 23% Saturated Fat 5.3 g 28% Cholesterol 106 mg 22% Sodium 847.1 mg 36% Total Carbohydrate 6,8 g 9% Dietary Fiber 2.2 g 10% Sugars 2.4 g 9% Protein 32 g 53%
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