Home Meals

Alright, while I haven't been out anywhere of great value lately, I have made a few meals that may be of interest to everyone. While I don't usually take the time to plate very many fancy meals for myself, I occasionally get on a whim to do so. This is such that example- simple, but efficient and I could have plated it a little better. On any note, I'm a fan of a little bit of "dead space," as some chefs call it, on the plate. I don't believe that the whole surface should be strewed with sauce or accompaniments. Personally, I find it more elegant to have it and I frequently use it like a painter's table- it’s a spot for me to mix my flavors and plate composition. On any note, here I've made a Rosemary, garlic, sage, and cracked black pepper pork tenderloin(courtesy of Sams Club : D) that was seared and then finished in a 350* oven until medium.

The Arborio Rice (Risotto) was concocted from a stock that I made earlier in the week from chicken broth and some roasted garlic and vegetables. I put my own small twist on it and added ingredients classically found in rice pilaf- carrots, onions, and celery (I’m a fan of color). Seasoning was accomplished with thoughts of how to complement the pork. I settled on finely minced lemon zest and a lemons worth of juice- in addition to the broth. Cracked black pepper and kosher salt were also added. In the ring mold under the risotto you'll see baby broccoli florets in a white cheddar cheese sauce. Cheese sauce, you say? Why would you do that?! At least, that is what I'm used to hearing : P Very often, risotto has cheese added to it. I chose to leave it out of the actual side itself and apply it more as a sauce to the broccoli that further added further complexity to the risotto when consumed together. The broccoli was lightly steamed then tossed in butter, where the cheese was then added to melt. Only salt was added as a seasoning because I didn't want to over excite or confuse my palate with different seasonings on each part of the plate- considering the starch and vegetable were to be consumed as one.
Eating: Pork was great, next time I could stand to chop or grind the rosemary finer yet. I hate to get jabbed in the roof of my mouth. While I enjoyed my risotto/broccoli combination, I wasn't thrilled texture wise. Now, some might argue and say it was a great idea and the contrast was fulfilling; I however, found that I should have taken the fibrous ends off the florets of broccoli. Though it was still young, the stalks made for a crunchiness and crispness that I did not appreciate in my risotto. This is due to my conception that risotto to should extremely moist and velvety with eloquently pronounced flavors. The blunt crunchiness of the broccoli interrupted this for me. I made a mental notation that I should cut the fibrous stalks off next time I use this combination. Furthermore, consuming the broccoli with the pork was just as periless. I wound up eating the broccoli separately and combining my pork and risotto. The zest from the risotto combined well with the pepper and rosemary on the tenderloins seared outer edges. Overall, I was satisfied with my meal, noting that at the least, I can execute the dish fairly quickly.