Pork Tenderloin Two Ways Over an Open Fire

My sister MJ visited this fall and brought beautiful pork tenderloin for  Saturday's dinner.  We were having difficulty deciding on whether to make the tenderloin with oranges and brown sugar, or wrap then in prosciutto, and so MJ suggested making the tenderloin two ways. 

MJ built a spectacular fire using a traditional log cabin setup and started it with only one match inspite of my wood being wet from a week of rain. Very impressive.  

Pork Tenderloin Two Ways                                           photo by MJ

Fire Roasted Pork Tenderloin with Oranges and Brown Sugar Crust  

• 1 pork tenderloin
• 1 organic orange
• 1/2 cup of brown sugar
• fresh thyme
• salt and pepper 
• olive oil
• 1/4 cup of white wine

Build fire about an hour before you plan to cook the meat to allow for a good bed of coals.  Place heavy cast iron griddle over fire and heat. Lightly olive oil the grill.   

Cut orange in quarters  and squeeze out juice.  Place  orange quarters in stainless steel pot with wine and 4 or 5 pepper corns and a dash of olive oil.  Top up with water. Boil for 20 minutes and let cool in liquid.  Remove from liquid and scrape off all of the white pith. Tear each quarter into two or three pieces. Remove membrane and fat from tenderloin. Pat dry. Sprinkle with thyme leaves. Arrange the orange skin pieces on the top of the tenderloin, then cover with the brown sugar and pat into the surface.  

Place on griddle and cook for 5 to 10 minutes on each side depending on thickness of the tenderloin.  Brush with olive oil.  Take off grill and let rest before cutting.  

Fire Roasted Pork Tenderloin with Sage in Prosciutto Wrap

• 1 pork tenderloin
• 5 or 6 thin slices of prosciutto
• good dijon mustard
• 6 fresh age leaves
• olive oil
• salt

Build fire about an hour before you plan to cook to allow for a good bed of coals.  

Salt tenderloin lightly, and then cover with a thin coat of mustard.  Arrange the sage leaves over the mustard and then wrap the tenderloin with the prosciutto. Brush lightly with olive oil. 

Brush olive oil on the griddle.  Place tenderloin on grill and cook for 5 to 10 minutes and flip over. Lightly brush with olive oil. Cook another 5 to 10 minutes depending on size of tenderloin. Take off grill and let rest. Cut and serve.