Ann at Cooking Healthy for Me and Kelly at Inspired Edibles have proven time and time again, that you need not suffer eating healthy, just a few smart choices in the kitchen will take your recipe from high in fat, to low in fat and full of flavour. Today’s recipe chooses a pork loin over pork chops because the loin is far less fatty and the fat that it does have can be easily removed before cooking. It can also be easily measured for portion control (we are using 100g (3 ounces) for a portion size). Today we are using the vegetables as thickeners so that we need not add a roux, or cream or butter saving you oodles of fat intensive calories (you should actually try writing down everything you put in your mouth over one day, and you would be surprised! and then you’ll thank me for this recipe).
Pork Medallions in a Sweet Red Pepper and Caramalized Onion Coulis
Serves 4
Ingredients:
- 400g loin of Pork, all fat removed, cut into medallions about 25g each
- 1 yellow pepper, roasted, skin removed (see notes and tips)
- 1 red pepper, roasted, skin removed (see notes and tips)
- 4 shallots, finely sliced
- 1/2 sweet onion, finely sliced
- 2 tbsp white vinegar
- 1/2 cup low sodium vegetable stock (I like to use Pacific)
- around 1 1/2 cups water
- 1 tbsp Dijon mustard (or slightly more to taste)
- 1/2 tsp salt
- Non-stick cooking spray
- 1 green onion and jalopeño pepper finely diced as garnish.
Directions:
- Lightly spray a medium sauce pan (large enough for the onions to be about 3 cm thick on the bottom). Add the onions and shallots and cook over medium heat until they are golden, add the white vinegar to deglaze the pan. Add the vegetable stock as required so that the onions and shallots don’t burn or stick to the bottom of the pan.
- When the onions and shallots are caramelized, add the roasted peppers and heat through.
- With an immersion blender, blend very well until silky smooth. Add the Dijon, salt and blend. If the consistency is too thick, add water until you have your desired consistency (should be the thickness of butter chicken sauce).
- Pre heat the oven to 350°F.
- In another pan lightly sprayed with non-stick cooking spray, sear the pork until you get a nice caramelization on the crust. Once done, add to the sauce and bake for about 10-12 minutes or until the desired done-ness of the pork (in Canada you can have pink pork as they have bread the salmonella out of it).
- Serve over greens or rice or use a flat bread to scoop it up. We’re keeping this on the healthy side, so we’ve put it on greens.
Notes and Tips:
- If you were not able to peel your peppers, push the finished coulis through a fine sieve to remove the tough skin bits of the peppers.
- By adding a bit more stock or water, this would make a lovely soup, perhaps with a dollop of fat free Greek Yogurt.
- We roasted our peppers on the BBQ for a nice smokey flavour.
- I added smoked paprika to the sauce for my lunch the next day…YUM!
- As an alternative flavour, I think one tbsp of garam masala and one tsp of meat masala would be fantastic in this sauce.
- If you’re down right convinced this is not a good sauce, then add a 1/2 cup of cream or a 1/4 cup of butter and be done with it.
After a winter of “reckless” winter blogging.. it has come to my attention that I am unable to, ahem, get into my summer shorts now that the snow is gone. I’m looking forward to being inspired to cook healthier dishes.. your blog is one of the best places for me to visit! This one looks great, Eva! xo Smidge
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Hi Eva–Great use of roasted red peppers. I wish you hadn’t said butter chicken though. Oh I haven’t had that in years. I can feel myself going out on a hunt for it now. lol!
– Michael
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Nice to see you’re back, Michael. Ah yes, Butter Chicken. I did post a recipe some time ago that is healthier than the restaurant variety…and tasty too!
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[…] tbsp red pepper coulis (or you can use honey or agave, but I am limiting my […]
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This looks delicious Eva! I love red pepper sauces, but had never thought to combine one with pork. I can just imagine how good this is and I love that it’s healthy too!
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Thank you Kristy, I’m making another batch of the sauce tomorrow to have with, oh wait, I don’t want to spoil it! Stay tuned!
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All those fresh and delicious ingredients must flavor the pork perfectly! What a yummy and healthy meal, Eva! A lower cal entree means I can have a cookie for dessert, right?
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Thank you kindly, Liz. As for dessert, normally I’d agree with you Liz, but I’m trying to cut back for three weeks to lose a few pounds, and I’m happy to report, it’s been quite successful, so far! I still 8 more days to go being strict, and then it’s maintenance, which means a little leniency!
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“That’s not butter chicken…” hee.hee! 🙂
Eva, the title alone of this beautiful dish is so enticing I’m not sure I need to see more… but I’m glad I did. Thank you so much for the mention. You’ve made some clever and delicious ingredient choices here and I’m smiling because I always have my clients chart their food and beverage intake over a 7 day period – it’s amazing the things we discover about ourselves! 🙂 Wonderful dish Eva; thanks again for thinking of me.
http://www.inspirededibles.ca
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Thank you kindly, Kelly, it means a lot to me coming from you! I am planning on using this coulis within other dishes, and I’m pretty excited about it. You have inspired many a dish on my blog, and I do indeed thank you!
It certainly is interesting to write down everything; and surprising how many things we just eat and forget about.
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It is always nice when you can create a dish that is full of flavor as I’m sure this is.
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Thank you kindly Karen, it was so tasty, I may will do it again and again for different proteins, for sure.
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This looks great Eva and I have had a caramelised onion fetish lately too! 😛
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Thanks Lorraine, they are indeed very versatile. I love using them as a base for a variety of sauces.
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You sure are coming up with some tempting stuff lately! (Not that that’s unusual.)
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Thanks Greg, very kind of you to say!
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Oh my – that’s a darn fine looking sauce. You weren’t kidding when you said you thought my wife would like it – I’ve no doubt she would… I know I definitely would. (By the way, my wife normally loves tomato sauce, – it’s just the combination of fish and tomato together which she thinks is weird… one of those flavour combos that don’t work for her).
Anyway, back to the sauce – I love the look of it, and I really didn’t think it was made from red peppers at first glance. Will need to give it a try – thanks so much for sharing it!
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Thanks Charles, I think I surprised JT with the flavour of the sauce, it was very rich without the cream. I’m making another batch tomorrow, just to have in the fridge!
Have a great night.
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It really DOES look like it could be butter chicken. (There are tandoori thighs waiting in my freezer to be transformed into JUST that one of these days.) But I’m sure the pork medallions are just as good and the coulis will keep them from drying out which is always a fear with lean pork as well as giving them an amazing taste. 🙂
By the way, bbq’d pork chops are SO good and not that fatty.
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Thanks Maria, yes I never thought of the drying out thing, good point.
Believe it or not I’ve never been a fan of pork chops!
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A Hungarian who doesn’t like pork … is that heresy? 🙂
By the way, one day, I want to make “Hortobagyi Husos Palacsinta”. Do you have any experience with them?
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Hi Maria, yes indeed I do have experience with the Hortobagyi Palacsinta. We used to make it with Csirke Paprikas, (chicken breast meat, no skin, no bones) rolling the meat into the palacsinta and drizzling the sauce over it. Just thinking about it makes my mouth water. We always used to pair it with a cucumber salad with a vinaigrette. YUM!
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That does sound good. Do you have a good recipe for the Chicken Paprikash you’d be willing to share?
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Thank you for asking, Maria, I usually cook it from memory. Give me a couple of weeks and I’ll see if I can hustle up a real recipe with measurements. My late Mom’s husband is coming down for the weekend next week, maybe that’s a good time to make it! Thanks for the inspiration.
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Thank you. I’ll keep an eye out for the post.
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I just remembered I had posted a recipe last October: https://kitcheninspirations.wordpress.com/2011/10/31/happy-halloween-another-scary-story-and-chicken-paprikas/
Instead of celery root, you can use parsnips but be careful to choose small ones the large ones will impart a bitter flavour. Let me know if you like it.
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Neither parsnips nor celery root are things I would eat so I’ll have to wait for a less healthy version of this dish to be posted. 🙂
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🙂
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i think i might be able to eat the coulis all by itself! It looks delish with the sweet red peppers and caremalizing any veggie just sets it apart! This looks amazing
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Thanks Jessica, it was indeed a very flavourful dish that will surely make a repeat performance in our kitchen!
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I’m sure that I’d like this as much as your butter chicken!
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Thanks Barb, I may just do it instead of butter chicken next time!
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I would thank you for this recipe anyway, Eva. We eat pork loin frequently because it is low in fat and I’m always looking for new ways to flavor it. But you had me at the title — I saw it in my email box and thought, “She’s done it again.” Thanks.
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Wow, Sharyn, that is some compliment, Thank you! I am quite flattered. We really loved the flavours and if you are inclined to like Indian Curry, you might try to add a bit of the Garam and or Meat Masala to make it even more flavourful. Do let me know if you try the recipe, I am always interested in feedback. JT absolutely loved it, but then again, we’ve been together over 30 years and married for 26, so our tastes might be similar. 😉
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Love the smokey flavors!
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Thanks Bill, it did lend a lovely subtle smokiness to the dish.
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Sure is a healthy dish with tons of flavor and so colorful. I work with loin of pork a great deal because it is easy to work with, very versatile and as you stated low fat. Great reipe.
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Thanks Norma, Pork used to get such a bad wrap, and now I am so glad that there is another “white” meat in the repertoire of healthy cooking. It really is quite easy to work with too!
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I am also a big fan of Kelly’s blog! I also substitute as often as I can fatty pork cuts by loin. Alas, even though I do it rarely, I am not able to completely cut off of what is considered as “unhealthy” dishes. Chinese pork ribs braised in soy sauce cannot be substituted by any other leaner part (I know because I have tried so many times…).
Your dish looks at first sight like a delicious Indian curry! The thick, mixed sauce based on sweet peppers sounds very original and I’m sure I would love it.
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Thanks Sissy, it’s true that some dishes are best not substituted with healthier options, that is exactly why I substitute where I can so that once in a while I can enjoy the slightly unhealthier dishes. That photo really does look like an Indian curry, and I am tempted to try a bit of Garam Masala pt Meat Masala next time I attempt this version. I might even throw in a hot pepper for good measure!
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This recipes proves that there’s more than one way to create a flavorful dish; fat isn’t the only answer. And I really do enjoy the taste of roasted red pepper in a dish. It adds just a touch of sweetness without being cloying in the slightest.
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Thanks John, I’m always looking for ways to cut down on fats for my recipes…that way I can enjoy a glass or two of wine with my food.The red pepper is a wonderful veg that adds a subtle flavour in the background or can be used as the star in the dish.
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I’m sure that coulis could be used to gravy-fy lots of dishes, maybe even just veges for a nice meal 😀
It looks so delicious!
Cheers
Choc Chip Uru
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Thank you kindly CCU, it was a lovely rich tasting sauce without the fat. I was very happy with it. And you are quite correct, it can be used on many dishes, or even as a slight sweetener in dressings and sauces.
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That does look delicious but it certainly doesn’t look like a health-farm meal. I would love to have that for dinner right now! Great idea to use the vegetables as thickeners xx
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Thanks Charlie. I’ve not heard the term Health Farm before, I must admit, it makes me giggle a bit!
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