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Monday, August 12, 2013

Island Pork Salad


 I’m kind of ashamed that it’s taken me so long to post this salad recipe. Ryan’s brother originally introduced me to this Island Pork Salad a few years ago, which is actually a P90X recipe. While we own the P90X DVDs, making the accompanying recipes wasn’t an area I’d ever ventured into…until Justin made this for us and won the entire family over. It’s now a family favorite both when we’re all together, and individually in each of our homes.
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The array of tastes and textures keep things exciting, so much so that you don’t even realize you’re digging into a fantastically healthy meal. The real star of the dish is the pork, so if salads aren’t really your thing, at least grill make the pork to eat alongside whatever you wish!

One Year Ago: Zippy Egg Casserole
Three Years Ago: Shrimp and Apple Kabobs with Curried Lentils

Island Pork Salad
adapted from Grit & Glimmer, a P90X cookbook recipe

Ingredients:
for the pork-
-2 lbs pork tenderloin
-1 tsp salt
-1/2 tsp pepper
-1 tsp chile powder
-1 tsp ground cumin
-1 tsp cinnamon
-4 tbsp olive oil
-1/2 cup packed brown sugar
-1 tbsp fresh garlic, finely chopped
-2 tbsp hot sauce, more if needed

for the salad-
-2-3 oranges, peeled and sectioned
-fresh spinach or mixed greens
-2 red, orange, or yellow bell peppers, cut lengthwise into thin strips
-golden raisins
-shredded Napa cabbage (definitely use Napa over regular green)

for the vinaigrette- (you may want to 1 1/2x or 2x the dressing if you like a lot of dressing!)
-1/2 cup fresh lime juice
-1/4 cup fresh orange juice
-2 tbsp dijon mustard
-2 tsp cumin powder
-1/2 tsp salt
-1/4 tsp pepper
-1/3 cup olive oil

Directions:
1. To make the pork, stir together the salt, pepper, cumin, chile powder, and cinnamon and coat pork with the spice rub. Allow to sit for at least 10 minutes and up to 8 hours. Sear pork on grill over high heat for a few minutes on each side. Reduce heat to medium-high on grill and grill until pork is cooked through (no pink). Five to ten minutes before removing from grill, stir together garlic, brown sugar, and hot sauce until a thick paste forms. Brush on pork and allow to cook for an additional 5-10 minutes. Remove pork from grill and allow to rest for 5 minutes before slicing.
2. To make the dressing, whisk together all ingredients until emulsified. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
3. To make salads, layer spinach or mixed greens with pork, sliced peppers, cabbage, golden raisins, and oranges. Drizzle with vinaigrette and serve immediately.