Maple Glazed Pork Tenderloin with Bourbon Sauce

This is the tastiest recipe that I have ever used on pork!! I will admit, this wasn't all me. I went to New York in October to the Food and Wine Festival. I saw Bobby Flay in a cooking segment. He made something very similar but used a more expensive cut of meat and a whole lot more ingredients that you don't really need, especially if you on a budget. I took his idea and tweaked it to make it my own. This is truly a comfort food dish! I have also used this with pork chops. Putting the meat in a brine does add flavor and makes the meat more tender but, it is not a necessary step. If you don't have time, don't worry about it!


Ingredients for the brine
****6 apple juice
½ cup salt
½ cup brown sugar
1 onion, peeled and quartered
10 black peppercorns
2 Tablespoons Dijon mustard
2 bay leaves
1 Tablespoon dried Thyme
**** This Christmas I had apple cider left over from my holiday mimosas so I used that instead of regular apple juice. It added a lot richer flavor.
Bring all ingredients to a simmer until sugar has dissolved. Cool completely. Submerge tenderloin in a large bowl or pot. Place a plate on tenderloin to make sure it says under the brine. Plastic wrap the bowl and let stand in the refrigerator for 12-24 hours.


Ingredients for glaze
¼ cup Dijon
2 tablespoons whole grain mustard
¼ cup molasses
salt and freshly ground black pepper


whisk together ingredients in a small bowl


Ingredients for pork
1 Pork tenderloin
Salt and ground black pepper
1 small onion finely chopped
2 cups good Bourbon
5 cups chicken stock
¼ cup light brown sugar
2 tablespoons cold unsalted butter
Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Remove the pork from the brine and pat dry with paper towels. Heat oil in a large sauté pan over high heat. Season the pork liberally on both sides with salt and pepper; you want to make a good crust cook on both sides until golden brown, about 5-6 minutes. Transfer the pork to a baking sheet, brush with some of the glaze and finish cooking in the oven until cooked to an internal temperature of 150 degrees on a meat thermometer, about 25-30 minutes, brushing with the glaze every 10 minutes. I glaze a second time with about 5 minutes to go. Remove from the oven, let rest loosely tented with foil for 10 minutes.
3. Add the onion to the pan that the pork was browned in and cook until soft. Add the bourbon, scraping the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon and cook until almost completely reduced. Add the chicken broth and brown sugar and bring to a boil and cook until reduced to a sauce consistency. Stir in the butter, season with salt and pepper.