Apple Cider Sauce
From Cook's Illustrated
We wanted a pork tenderloin recipe that would be fast enough for a weeknight dinner and still offer maximum flavor. Cutting the tenderloins into 1 ½-inch-thick medallions and tying the medallions or wrapping blanched bacon around them, fastened with toothpicks, allowed us to create a beautiful sear on all sides of these neat packages in the time it took the meat to reach an internal temperature of 145 to 150 degrees. The searing process had the extra benefit of producing enough fond to create several easy, flavorful pan sauces for our pork tenderloin medallions recipe.
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1½ cups apple cider
1 cup low-sodium chicken broth 2 teaspoons cider vinegar 1 cinnamon stick 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 4 pieces 2 large shallots, minced (about ½ cup) 1 tart apple, such as Granny Smith, cored, peeled, and diced small ¼ cup Calvados or apple-flavored brandy 1 teaspoon minced fresh thyme leaves Salt and ground black pepper |
1. Combine cider, broth, vinegar, and cinnamon stick in medium saucepan; simmer over medium-high heat until liquid is reduced to 1 cup, 10 to 12 minutes. Remove cinnamon stick and discard. Set sauce aside until pork is cooked.
2. Pour off any fat from skillet in which pork was cooked. Add 1 tablespoon butter and heat over medium heat until melted and foaming subsides. Add shallot and apple and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened and beginning to brown, 1 to 2 minutes. Remove skillet from heat and add Calvados. Return skillet to heat and cook about 1 minute, scraping bottom with wooden spoon to loosen browned bits. Add reduced cider mixture, any juices from resting meat, and thyme; increase heat to medium-high and simmer until thickened and reduced to 1 1/4 cups, 3 to 4 minutes. Off heat, whisk in remaining 3 tablespoons butter, and adjust seasonings with salt and pepper. Pour sauce over pork and serve immediately. |