For this recipe on super-easy family grilling, we're departing from usual practice and using a bottled marinade. Sometimes you just gotta go there.
In this case, we used half the bottle of marinade as a marinade, and the half that hadn't touched uncooked pork became a sort of salad dressing.
The kids were not interested in the greens, but they liked the pork.
Here's how you make it:
Grilled pork over greens
Serves 4 to 6
11⁄2-2 pounds pork tenderloin
1⁄2 bottle of KC Masterpiece Spiced Caribbean Jerk Marinade
3-4 cups arugula, stemmed and roughly chopped
Place pork in a baking pan and cover with the marinade. Refrigerate for about 30 minutes. Meanwhile, prepare a charcoal grill for indirect cooking, heaping the coals on one side of the grill.
Place pork on the cool side of the grill, brushing with a bit of the marinade.
Cover the grill, leaving vents open, and cook until pork reaches 165 degrees on a meat thermometer. Remove from grill, cover with foil, and rest meat about 10 minutes. Discard any marinade that was in the pan with the pork.
Slice pork into medallions and serve over arugula. If you like, use the rest of the bottle of marinade (the part which has not touched uncooked pork) as a sauce for the salad on the side.
Per serving (based on 6 servings, not including sauce on side): 230 calories, 25 grams protein, 11 grams fat, 2 grams saturated fat, 3 grams carbohydrate, 0 grams fiber, 75 milligrams cholesterol, 352 milligrams sodium.
1 3-pound pork loin
1 cup apple cider
1⁄4 cup soy sauce
1⁄4 cup honey
2 tablespoons ketchup
1⁄2 teaspoon ginger
2 red bell peppers, seeded and cut into wedges
2 large onions, cut into wedges and skewered
1⁄4 cup vegetable oil
Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Cut the pork loin into 1⁄2-inch-thick medallions. Combine the cider, soy, honey, ketchup, and ginger in a bowl. Place the pork medallions in a large, flat dish and pour the cider mixture over them. Cover and let the pork marinate for at least 2 hours in the refrigerator.
When ready to grill, brush the vegetables lightly with oil, and season to taste with salt and pepper. Place on the grill or grill pan and grill for 8 minutes. (If you are using a grill pan, you will have to work in batches.) Remove the pork from the marinade and drain.
Season to taste with salt and pepper and grill 3 to 4 minutes on each side over high heat to coincide with the end of the vegetable cooking time. Watch the medallions closely; they will cook quickly because they are thinly sliced. Be sure the pork's juices run clear when removed from the grill. If they do not, return to the grill and cook for another 30 seconds or so on each side.