Fridays are wonderful! We’d like to plan a special dinner that opens the door to the weekend, but, let’s face it, Friday is still a work day. So, coming up with a special meal is challenging. If you suffer from this “Friday Night Dilemma”, let me rescue you with a simple dish that delivers great flavor, elegance and a wonderful ending to your week.

PORK MEDALLIONS WITH MUSTARD-CAPER SAUCE
(adapted from Simple Recipes, recipe originally published in Bon Appetit)

1 lb pork tenderloin, cut crosswise into 1/2-inch-thick rounds
2 Tbsp butter
1/2 white onion, finely diced
1 cup chicken broth (homemade if possible!)
4 Tbsp whipping cream
3 Tbsp drained capers
2 Tbps good quality mustard

If your pork slices are not even, use a mallet to gently pound them into 1/2 inch thickness. Season with salt and black pepper. Melt the butter in a heavy large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the pork to the skillet and sauteé until it’s brown and cooked through, about 2 minutes per side. Remove pork slices to another plate as you proceed to make the sauce.

Add the diced onions to the skillet and stir for about 1 minute. Add chicken broth and cream. Boil until the sauce is thick enough to coat a spoon, stirring up the browned bits. It should take a little over 5 minutes. Mix in the capers and mustard; return the pork to the sauce. Simmer the mixture until the pork is heated through, about 2 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper and serve.

ENJOY!

Serves 3. (original recipe says it serves 4, but we respectfully disagree…)

jump for more photos and a few comments

General comments –  The only labor intensive part of this recipe is cleaning the pork tenderloin and cutting into medallions. If you want to speed up things, do this prep the day before, or early in the morning before you go to work. However, even if you do all the prep work in the evening, dinner can be at the table in a little over 30 minutes. Not bad at all…  Pork tenderloin is usually sold in a package containing two pieces, I used only one for this recipe, but cut the second one in medallions and vac-packed it using my Food Saver,freezing it for later.

This dish goes well with creamy polenta (as shows in Elise’s site), but last night we enjoyed it with pasta. A little salad, and voila’: special dinner mission completed!