Barbecued pork is an all time American favorite food, especially during the summer seasons when we have all those fun-filled get togethers with all our friends and families.  Pork, the other white meat, is very much like chicken in that it has a subtle flavor so it can go with lots of different meals.  You may often see ham on the table for holiday’s such as Thanksgiving and/or Christmas.  These holidays call out for the sweet flavors of honey, cinnamon, allspice and many other warm spices but these aren’t the only flavors that go well with this wonderful meat. 

So many wonderful flavors will go together perfectly with this meat, such as, Alfredo sauce, marinara sauce, basil and olive oil, spinach and artichokes, capers and sun-dried tomatoes, fire roasted peppers with dill Havarti cheese slices melted over or in it!  So many choices and just one cut of meat per night! The possibilities are endless.  Basically, you can take your favorite combinations of food and roast it with your favorite cut of pork.

Pork loin is an amazing cut that you can do so much with.  Here’s some examples of different ways to prepare this cut.  First of all, you can butterfly the meat by cutting down the middle of the loin just until you get all the way through and spread it open.  After you cut it you can then either stuff it and roll it closed or you can top each half with cheese, spinach and whatever else you like and just cook it as is.  Another way to prepare a pork loin is to cut the it into about 1-1 1/2 in thick medallions, then bread it with some Italian bread crumbs and pan fry or bake them to make a nice crunchy crust on each piece.  Then there’s always the very simple preparation of just cooking it whole in it’s own juices by adding just a little bit of water and serving with your favorite sauce.  Pork loin can also be used in the making of lasagnas by just cutting very thin slices and layering these as you would the typical lasagna noodles. 

Here’s a tip for keeping your pork loin moist and tender.  Cook the meat till the internal temperature reaches 170 degrees F and then let it rest uncovered for about 5-10 minutes.  After you let the meat rest all the juices will be absorbed back into the meat making it tender and juicy even for reheats.  The key to any kind of meat is to not overcook it.  The way you do this is to have a meat thermometer on hand and a chart of all the different meat temperatures on it so it is easy to know what you are looking for when cooking a piece of meat.