Pork Tenderloin with Cherry Mostarda + Mint Rice Salad

Every week, Caroline Wright creates simple, civilized recipes for Food52 that feed four -- for under $20, in under 20 minutes.

Today: When it's too hot to go outside or get dressed, at least your dinner can be elegant.   

It’s almost too hot to go outside now, that critical point of summer that seems to be lived in the moments between ice cream cones. This recipe was intended to bring a little elegance to the table (in ways my attire or demeanor certainly can’t oblige) with minimal cooking -- just a quick sear in the skillet and leftover rice. 

The secret to making the prep process efficient to our twenty-minute allotment is to measure and prepare the ingredients for the mostarda and rice salad while the pork sears. I wouldn’t want to hold you for even a moment longer from what I’m hoping is a glass of refreshing rosé.  

Seared Pork Tenderloin with Skillet Cherry Mostarda + Mint Rice Salad

Serves 4

1 small (1-pound) pork tenderloin, trimmed of silverskin
2 tablespoons olive oil plus more for pork, divided
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 cup cherries, smashed to remove pit
1/4 red onion, finely chopped
1 tablespoon grainy mustard
2 teaspoons white-wine vinegar, divided
1/2 cup mint leaves, thinly sliced
1 1/2 cups cold, leftover cooked white rice
1/4 cup roasted almonds, coarsely chopped 

See the full recipe (and save and print it) here.

As a freelance food writer and cook, I first wrote this style of recipe as a column on my blog, The Wright Recipes, as an excuse to cook good food for my friends in a quick and simple way. 

Twenty-Dollar, Twenty-Minute™ Meals grew into a cookbook that was published by Workman in May 2013. The recipes found here are original, made especially for Food52 to once again celebrate simple food with friends.

Photo by Caroline Wright