roast pork fillet w cider & pistachios

 
This is another of my Autumn inspired dishes and it’s been perfect during the torrential rain Sydney has been experiencing lately.

But I imagine this dish would be equally good as summer afternoon roast if you sat outside and let the warm weather touch your skin.

The colours are so pretty and the flavours are quite elegant. I’m a big fan of this quick and easy roast.

Roast Pork Fillet w Cider & Pistachios
Anna’s recipe inspired by Stephanie Alexander. Serves 2.
Ingredients:
350g pork fillet
¼ cup shelled pistachio nuts, chopped
1 red onion, sliced
2 garlic cloves, sliced
3 sprigs lemon thyme
½ cup apple cider
Fleur de Sel, to taste
Freshly milled pepper, to taste
Olive oil

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 180'C.

2. Trim the pork fillet of sinews and fat. Rub with olive oil, lemon thyme and pepper. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.

3. Heat some olive oil in a large frying pan. Saute the onions and garlic until oftened then transfer to a baking dish.

4. Heat a little more olive oil on high before browning the pork for 4 minutes then turn and brown the other side for 3 minutes.

5. Remove pork to the baking pan and sit on onions.

6. Deglaze the frying with apple cider. Simmer for 5 minutes until reduced a little.

7. Pour over pork then sprinkle pork with pistachio nuts and fleur de sel.

8. Bake in the oven for 20 minutes or until cooked through but still pink and tender.

9. Transfer juices to frying pan and reduce a little further.

10. Serve pork in slices, drizzled with pan juices and accompanied by a salad of bitter greens or roasted brussels sprouts and baked potatoes.

This dish relies heavily upon the fragrant flavours of lemon thyme, which is my theme ingredient for Weekend Herb Blogging.

Lemon thyme (Thymus citriodorus) is a cross between common thyme and the more aromatic thymus pulegioides. This hybrid produces a gorgeous citrus scented herb with medium green foliage and small lilac flowers.

Native to Europe, Asia, northern Africa it is used in the cuisines of most countries in these regions as well as the Caribbean

Thyme was used by the Ancient Egyptians for embalming, the Ancient Greeks in their temples, by Romans to purify their rooms and by Medieval Europeans to ward away nightmares. Hmm?

Thyme symbolises courage and is also known as a good source of iron.

This is my entry for Weekend Herb Blogging, hosted by WHB's very own manager Haalo from Cook (almost) Anything At Least Once.

Other lemon thyme recipes:
Dried Strawberries & Lemon Thyme Shortbread - Cupcake Muffin
Lemon Thyme Bars - Not Eating Out in New York
Lemon Thyme Chicken Nuggets - Butter & Sugar
Lemon Thyme Crème Brûlée - Chocolate & Zucchini
Lemon Thyme Cupcakes - Fresh Approach Cooking
Lemon Thyme Curd - Tartelette
Lemon Thyme Gimlet - Slashfood
Lemon Thyme Green Beans - Sugar & Spice
Lemon Thyme Sorbet - Andrea Meyers
Lemon Thyme Tea Bread - Cafe Lynnylu
Mushroom & Lemon Thyme Soup - Nami Nami
Noodles w Creamy Chicken & Lemon Thyme - A la Galadrielle...
Pan Seared Scallops w Lemon Thyme Drizzle - That's Not What the Recipe Says
Pork w Lemon Thyme Sauce - Bear Necessities
Ricotta Gnocchi w Lemon Thyme Butter Sauce - Technicolor Kitchen
Vodka-Thyme Lemonade - Appetite for China
Zucchini Carpaccio w Avocado & Lemon Thyme - The Wednesday Chef

References:
http://www.backyardgardener.com/plantname/pda_1be1.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thyme
http://www.villageherb.com.au/herb_info.htm