Reviewer Cooks...Pork Medallions in Sticky Soy Glaze with Bacon Courgettes/Zucchini

 

Pork has always been somewhat of my Achilles heel, from the unpalatabley fatty roast pork with crackling, the overwhelming toughness of pork chops or any of those tough cuts of pig are not my cup of tea. However, when done well, like in the delicious char siu pork, or even the stringy heavenly pulled pork, which is undoubtedly amazing when roasted for over 6 hours and drizzled with as much barbecue sauce as possible. And while the tenderloin is a cut I am not familiar with, of what I've tasted, it is like a mixture of fillet steak and spare ribs, a perfect budget alternative to these more expensive cuts.
On a random Tuesday night when for whatever reason, we had pork medallions. And after a short time browsing the web for some decent recipes, and with no recipes that were halfway decent, apart from honey balsamic pork, which my brother protested against, hating the flavour of cooked balsamic vinegar, an opinion which I can hardly blame him for.
So, just before giving up, I noticed a little recipe for soy sauce medallions which seemed easy enough, on the back of the packet. And as the timings were completely off, and produced bitterly burned pork, I adapted it and used an improvised zucchini/courgette recipe from all those leftovers slowly taking over our fridge.
Pork has not entirely won me over let but this recipe is a good start, and with a flavour and texture similar to steak, I can see this as a delicious budget alternative.

Pork Medallions in Sticky Soy Glaze

Ingredients
12 pork medallions or 1 pound pork fillet, sliced into rounds
2 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp rice vinegar
1 tbsp mirin
1/2 tbsp sesame oil
1 tsp treacle/molasses
Olive Oil

1. Heat a pan with a little oil. Use a spatula to create a thin layer of oil. Season this layer with salt and pepper. (This will form a nice crust on the medallions) Crush a clove of garlic into this oil if you want an garlicky medallion.

2. Sear the pork for 2 minutes on each side until crisp and golden. Mix together the other ingredients and sizzle them in the pan. Cook for about 5 minutes until pink. If there is not enough liquid, have a cup of water on hand to deglaze the pan every so often.

3. Snip on some spring onion/scallion and serve

Bacon Courgette/Zucchini

Ingredients
1 Courgette/Zucchini, sliced into rounds
2 strips bacon
1 onion, diced
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
Olive oil
1 tbsp butter
Splash of sake/white whine

1. Heat the oil and the butter until the butter melts. Add in the onion and saute until wilted and translucent. Add in the bacon and fry for 2 minutes, when the bacon crisps up.

2. Drop in the courgette, add the sake and some water, then cover and simmer for 10 minutes. Take off the lid and evaporate the excess water, then serve immediately with a knob of butter.