Grilled Cherry Balsamic Pork Tenderloin sits on page 184 of a cookbook I bought because of one photo. The book is The Orchard Kitchen by Frances Mosley, and the cover shows a chipped enamel platter with pork medallions in dark sauce and a single sprig of thyme. I bought it at a used bookstore in Pasadena, paid four dollars for it, and made the recipe wrong about eleven times before I got it right.
I am not exaggerating. Eleven.
Page 184 and a Pasadena Bookstore
Frances Mosley wrote The Orchard Kitchen in the late nineties, when American cookbooks were finally letting balsamic vinegar out of the salad dressing chapter. She was a wine country home cook with a column in a Napa paper, and she had strong feelings about stone fruit. The book is dog-eared now. The pork section has a coffee ring on it, and I am not going to apologize for that.
The book has 244 pages, hand-drawn chapter dividers, and one of those ribbon bookmarks sewn into the spine that I always find slightly fancy in a cookbook. My ribbon lives at page 184. The previous owner left a grocery list in the back, written on the reverse of a Trader Joe’s receipt from 2003. I have not thrown it away.
What hooked me was the headnote. Frances wrote that pork and cherries had been put together in American kitchens since the Boston Cooking-School Cook Book in 1896, and that her version was nothing fancy. Just a marinade, a hot grill, and a saucepan. I trusted her immediately.
Eleven Attempts, Mostly Edible
The first attempt, I overcooked the pork. Standard mistake. I pulled it at 160 F because that is what I grew up hearing, and it came off the grill dry and chalky. The cherry sauce could not save it. Nothing was going to save it.
I have opinions now. Pork tenderloin and pork loin are not the same cut, and people swap them constantly. Tenderloin is the small lean muscle that cooks in fifteen minutes. Loin is the big roast that takes an hour. Treat them like the same thing and you will end up disappointed.
The USDA changed the safe pork temperature to 145 F years ago, with a three-minute rest. The meat is slightly pink and juicy at that point. It is not undercooked. It is correct.
Attempt three, I tried it with pork loin instead of tenderloin because the store was out. That was the day I learned the difference really matters. The loin needed forty-five minutes, came out tough, and the cherries had cooled to a sad jam by the time the meat was finally done. I ate a salad for dinner and started over the next weekend.
By the fourth attempt I had the doneness down. The sauce was still wrong. Too sweet, then too thin, then too thick and jammy. I kept refining. Friday nights, mostly, when I had nothing else going on.
What I Used
The shopping list is short, which is part of why I kept coming back to it.
- 2 pork tenderloins, about a pound each, silverskin trimmed
- 1/2 cup good supermarket balsamic vinegar, divided
- 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
- 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
- 2 tablespoons honey, divided
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves, plus more for the top
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt, divided
- 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, divided
- 1 shallot, finely minced
- 2 cups fresh or frozen pitted Bing cherries, halved
- 2 tablespoons packed brown sugar
- 1/4 cup low-sodium chicken broth
- 1 tablespoon cold unsalted butter
The Cherry Sauce, Which Is The Whole Point
Frances writes that the sauce should coat the back of a spoon and slide off in a slow ribbon. She is right about this. Anything thinner runs into the pork juices on the platter and turns into pink soup. Anything thicker tastes like jam on meat.
I make the sauce first now, while the pork marinates. Shallot in olive oil. Halved Bing cherries, balsamic, brown sugar, honey, a splash of chicken broth. Ten or twelve minutes of simmer and it thickens into something glossy. Off the heat, I swirl in a tablespoon of cold butter, which Frances does not call for. I added that myself around attempt seven. It changes the texture in a way I do not want to give up.
About the balsamic. Do not use the expensive aged Tradizionale here. That bottle is for finishing strawberries and slicing parmesan over. For a reduction sauce, a decent supermarket balsamic is exactly right. The cheap stuff cooks down beautifully, and the good stuff would be wasted in a saucepan.
Grilling The Cherry Balsamic Pork
This is the part where I want to tell you about the kitchen, not the technique. I put on Joni Mitchell, Blue, because I always do, and I pour myself a glass of the pinot I am planning to serve with dinner. Frances suggests pinot in her headnote, and I now think that is non-negotiable. I eat a few almonds and half a cracker with cheese while the grill heats. The kitchen smells like garlic and thyme.
Once the grill is at about 450 F and the grates are oiled, I pull the tenderloins out of the marinade and let the excess drip off. Twelve to sixteen minutes, turning every three or four. The thermometer is non-negotiable here. Eyeballing pork tenderloin is how people end up with chalk.
Pull at 140 F. Tent loosely. Rest eight to ten minutes.
Carryover heat brings it to 145 F while I rewarm the cherry sauce and swirl in the cold butter. If you skip the rest, the juices run all over the board and the meat tastes like a missed opportunity.
Twists on Grilled Cherry Balsamic Pork Tenderloin
Frozen pitted cherries work fine in the off-season. Thaw them, drain off the dark liquid, and proceed. I have used fresh Bings in June and bagged frozen ones in February. The June version is brighter. The February version is still good enough that I make this in winter anyway.
I swapped the thyme for rosemary once. I would not do it again. Rosemary fights with the cherries instead of standing beside them.
Leftovers, sliced cold over arugula the next day, with a little of the sauce warmed and drizzled on top. Better than the original, honestly. Cold pork tenderloin is a small underrated joy.
I still keep the book on the counter when I make this, even though I do not need to read it anymore. The spine cracks open at page 184 on its own now. Frances Mosley does not know I exist, but she taught me how to grill pork without ruining it, and I owe her at least a coffee ring.
Cherry Balsamic Pork Tenderloin
Ingredients
Equipment
Method
- Pat the tenderloins dry and trim away the silvery membrane running down each one with a sharp knife. This prevents the meat from curling on the grill.
- In a mixing bowl, whisk 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar, 2 tablespoons olive oil, the Dijon mustard, 1 tablespoon honey, the minced garlic, fresh thyme, 1 teaspoon kosher salt, and 1/2 teaspoon black pepper.
- Place the tenderloins in a zip-top bag or shallow dish, pour the marinade over, and turn to coat. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes and up to 8 hours.
- While the pork marinates, make the cherry sauce. Heat the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil in a small saucepan over medium heat. Add the minced shallot and cook until softened, about 2 minutes.
- Add the halved cherries, remaining 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar, brown sugar, remaining 1 tablespoon honey, and the chicken broth. Bring to a simmer.
- Cook the sauce, stirring occasionally, until the cherries break down slightly and the liquid reduces to a glossy syrup that coats the back of a spoon, about 10 to 12 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.
- Preheat the grill to medium-high, about 450 F. Clean and oil the grates well.
- Remove the tenderloins from the marinade, letting excess drip off. Season all over with the remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper.
- Place the tenderloins on the hot grill and close the lid. Grill for 12 to 16 minutes total, turning every 3 to 4 minutes, until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part registers 140 F.
- Transfer the pork to a cutting board, tent loosely with foil, and rest for 8 to 10 minutes. The internal temperature will rise to 145 F.
- Gently rewarm the cherry sauce over low heat. Off the heat, swirl in the cold butter until the sauce is glossy. Taste and adjust with a pinch of salt if needed.
- Slice the tenderloins crosswise against the grain into 1/2-inch medallions. Arrange on a platter, spoon the warm cherry balsamic sauce over the top, and scatter with extra fresh thyme leaves before serving.