Pork Tenderloin and Tomato Relish

Last night we tested another recipe for Cook's Illustrated.  This time it was for pork tenderloin, tomato relish with couscous.  It was a healthy recipe to be prepared in a crock pot.  Right off the bat I felt this was not a good recipe.  Why use a crock pot for meat that will cook quickly in the oven or on a grill?  But we made it anyway.

The last bullet point worried me,  "be sure to spoon the tomato relish over the pork before seving or else the pork may taste a bit bland."  Was I about to waste two tenderloins on a bad recipe?

I decided to also make Southern Green Beans to go with it.  At least part of the meal would be fabulous.  Just stating the facts, folks.  My beans are killer!

Beans ready to snap

Bacon grease, bacon, salt ( No Salt at our house), minced onions, and love.

Ingredients for the meat dish.  Tenderloins are ready to be trimmed of fat and silver skin.

Meat rubbed with seasonings, fennel one of them yuck, and in broth to cook.

Set for two hours on low

Meat resting and couscous in crock pot.

Tomato Relish: wine vinegar, basil, cherry tomatoes, garlic, salt n pepper, olive oil

This was really really good.

This, not so good.  Color is awful, no browning, just gray.  And they were right, without the relish, very bland except for strong fennel taste.  People, fennel and pork does not work well.  Marty loves fennel, me not so much, and he didn't like the combination.  

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If you cover the meat up with relish and couscous, not a bad looking plate.  

We will salvage the left over pork and make sandwiches.  A little mustard or BBQ sauce will make it better.  I would make the relish over again.  It would make a nice tangy salad.  

Pork tenderloin in a crock pot, why?  It should have been browned first, and then maybe different seasonings.  Yes, you can throw stuff together and leave it cooking for a couple of hours.  But it wasn't good.  I could have cooked it in the oven better and faster. And I have. I love a crock pot, but they are not for all things.