Day 136: Back to Work

Back from vacation and back to work - at the office and in the kitchen.  Dinner tonight was pork tenderloin and stewed zucchini.

First, I turned my oven on to 400 degrees and then browned the pork (well seasoned with S&P) on all sides in a large pre-heated stainless steel pan coated with olive oil.  Once the pork was browned, I removed it from the pan, rubbed it with about 3 cloves of chopped garlic all over the outside, placed it in a roasting pan that I'd sprayed with Pam, and placed it in the oven for about 20 minutes (18 may have been enough, but I'm always worried about under-cooking).

While the pork was roasting, I prepared the side dish.  I deglazed the pan that had been used to brown the pork so that I could make the best use of the flavor left behind in all those brown bits stuck to the bottom of the pan.  If you haven't tried this little cooking trick, you really should.  It's so easy and really enhances the flavor of your food.  While the pan is hot, pour inabout 1/4 cup of some kind of liquid - I usually use white wine or chicken broth.  

My white wine started sizzling in the pan immediately and I took a wooden spoon and began scraping up the brown bits.   They come up surprisingly easy.  Then I added 2 minced cloves of garlic, half an onion (sliced thin), and a few shakes from the red pepper flake jar.  I allowed these items to simmer in the wine for a few minutes until soft and then added 3 zucchini, sliced in half vertically and then horizontally at 1/2 inch width.  I also added a can of chopped tomatoes, about 1/2 tsp of dried oregano, and a good dose of S&P.

Zucchini is one of the rare vegetables that I like cooked until soft.  I turned down the temperature to medium low and allowed the concoction to simmer for about 15-20 minutes, stirring frequently.  Of course, if you prefer to keep it more al dente, you can cook it for less time - but try it my way, at least once.