Slow Cooked Pork Loin with Kale & Mushrooms over Creamy Polenta

In the past, my slow cooker has only been used for queso.  Today changed all that.  It took guts, but I put two beautiful pork loins in my decrepitly old slow cooker, closed the lid and walked away.  Much to my surprise, about 4 hours later this pork loin was perfect; moist, flavorful and delicious!

As for the Kale, who can go wrong with anything that has pancetta and mushrooms in it?

Perfect Flavor Combinations

Succulent Pork Loin in the Slow Cooker

The Chef In My Head

2 pounds pork tenderloin

1 envelope dry onion soup mix

1 C water

3/4 C Cabernet Savignon red wine

4 T low sodium soy sauce

4 cloves garlic, minced

Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Tony's seasoning, to taste

Heat a large skillet to med-high heat with about 1 tablespoon of olive oil.  Pat dry pork tenderloin and season with pepper.  Brown tenderloin on all sides.  Place browned tenderloin into slow cooker with the contents of the soup packet on high.  Pour water, wine and soy sauce over the top, turning the pork to coat evenly.  Sprinkle the fresh garlic over the pork leaving as much on top as possible.  Season with more pepper and Tony's.  Adjust temperature to low setting and cook for 4 hours.

Remove pork loin to platter and cover tightly with foil.  Carefully pour cooking liquid to a small saucepan and cook until liquid is reduce by half.  Thicken with cornstarch if necessary.  Check for seasonings and serve with pork loin over creamy polenta or mashed potatoes.

Note:  In the photo you will see that I did not thicken the liquid enough :/  Still tasted great, I just wasn't happy with the appearance.

Serves 6.  Enjoy!

Kale, Pancetta & Mushrooms over Creamy Polenta adapted from Bon Appetit
The Chef In My Head

Ingredients:
1-1/4 pounds kale, stemmed, washed well & rough chopped

2 C whole milk
1-1/4 C water
1 C polenta
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 tsp ground black pepper

6 oz pancetta (Italian bacon) or bacon, coarsely chopped
8 oz mushrooms (such as crimini, oyster, and stemmed shiitake), sliced
2 T olive oil, divided
1 garlic clove, minced
1/2 C white wine
1/4 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
2 T chopped fresh thyme
1 T grated lemon peel

4 T butter
2/3 C freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Preparation:


Bring milk, water, polenta, salt, and pepper to boil in heavy large saucepan over medium heat, whisking constantly. Reduce heat to low and simmer until thick, stirring occasionally, about 20 minutes. Remove from heat.


Meanwhile, cook pancetta in heavy large skillet over medium-high heat until golden brown, about 3 minutes. Using slotted spoon, transfer pancetta to paper towels. Add mushrooms and oil to drippings in skillet. Sauté until mushrooms are tender, about 6 minutes. Stir in kale and pancetta. Add garlic, white wine and seasonings.  Cover and simmer until kale is tender to your taste. Stir in thyme and  lemon peel. Season to taste with salt and pepper.


Whisk butter and Parmesan into polenta and divide among plates. Top with kale mixture.

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Spicy Tomato-Basil Sauce with Pan-Seared Polenta

My husband loves cornbread so he was easy enough to convince to try Polenta. As I tried to explain it to him, he had his doubts, but he's always willing to try something new. I love that it is seared with the crispy edges covered with sauce, it's all texture and flavor. No doubt this would be even easier to prepare with instant polenta but I am a purest at heart. As everyone that knows me can attest, I love to use every gadget, piece of cookware or equipment I can. The sauce was able to simmer throughout the baking process of the polenta. The sauce can easily be used on bruscetta for an appetizer or over pasta for a quick week night dinner, very versatile. Enjoy!

Spicy Tomato-Basil Sauce with Pan Seared Polenta adapted from Bon Appetite January 2010

Polenta:

8 C water

5 T. (or more) olive oil, divided

2 tsp sea salt

2 C Polenta

1/2 tsp freshly ground pepper

Spicy Tomato-Basil Sauce:

4 1/2 C canned crushed tomatoes with added puree (from two 28 oz cans), divided

1/4 C pine nuts, toasted

3/4 C finely chopped onion

6 large cloves garlic, minced

3/4 tsp dried crushed red pepper

1/2 C roasted red pepper, chopped

1/2 C finely chopped fresh basil, divided

1/3 C dry white wine

1 tsp dried oregano

Polenta Prep:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place 15x10x2-inch glass baking dish on rimmed baking sheet. Combine 8 cups water, 3 T olive oil and 2 tsp sea salt in dish. Gradually mix in polenta.

Place baking sheet with polenta in oven. Bake polenta 1 hour. Add pepper and stir to blend. Bake 20 minutes. Stir again and spread evenly. Bake until polenta is very thick, about 20 minutes longer. Remove from oven, press polenta evenly and allow to cool to room temperature, 1 to 2 hours (polenta will become firm). DO AHEAD: can be made 2 days ahead. Cover with plastic wrap; chill.

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Cut polenta into 4 strips. Cut each strip crosswise into 6 squares. Heat remaining olive oil in large non-stick skillet over med-high heat. Working in batches, add polenta squares. Saute until crisp and beginning to color, about 8 minutes per side. Transfer polenta to small baking sheet, place in oven to keep warm. Repeat with remaining polenta, adding oil to skillet as needed.

Divide polenta among plates. Top with warm Spicy Tomato-Basil Sauce. Garnish with fresh basil and Parmesan-Reggiano cheese.

Sauce prep:

Place 1 C crushed tomatoes in food processor. Add toasted pine nuts and blend until very smooth. Heat oil in heavy pot over med-high heat. Add onion, garlic and crushed red pepper. Saute until onion is soft, about 5 minutes. Add remaining crushed tomatoes, 2 T chopped basil, wine and oregano. Scrape tomato mixture from processor and add roasted red pepper, stir to combine. Simmer sauce until flavors blend. Season to taste with salt, pepper and more dried crushed red pepper if desired. DO AHEAD: Can be made 1 day ahead. Cool, cover and chill. Rewarm sauce. Mix in remaining chopped basil.

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