As a Bellingham, Washington, resident, I love Chuckanut Bay Distillery. The spirits made by my hometown distillery are great, the people are friendly, the mission to slowcraft locally distilled spirits using ingredients sourced within miles of the location is fantastic. Plus, the distillery is even expanding into a spacious new location in downtown Bellingham that you can read more about here.
To follow my proclamation of love, it shouldn’t be a surprise that I also wrote that article. But to be more specific, I love their bourbon. It’s perfect to drink straight, on the rocks or in a mixed beverage.
There was one more way I wanted to try and use their bourbon, and that was in a marinade. I’ve always found pork tenderloins delicious, but you can take them to the next level when you marinate it in Chuckanut Bay’s delicious bourbon.
Top this with horseradish cream sauce and you’re set for a quick-roasted winter supper worthy of pairing with a glass of bourbon.
Chuckanut Bay Distillery Bourbon Pork Tenderloins with Horseradish Cream
Recipe by Kenneth Clarkson
Serves 4-6
Ingredients for Horseradish Cream
½ cup sour cream
½ cup heavy cream
¼ cup prepared horseradish
freshly ground black pepper, to taste
sea salt, to taste
zest of ½ lemon
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
½ tablespoon mayonnaise
1 tablespoon freshly chopped green onions
In a medium bowl, whisk the heavy cream until thickened, then add in all the other ingredients, one at a time to incorporate evenly. Once everything is mixed and to your liking, taste sauce, correct seasoning and refrigerate until ready to serve. Yields about 1 ¾ cups.
Ingredients for Pork Tenderloins
2 ¾ pound pork tenderloins
1 tablespoon butter
2 tablespoons freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 rosemary sprig, picked and minced
2 thyme sprigs, picked and minced
2 oregano sprigs, picked and minced
¼ cup Chuckanut Bay Distillery Bourbon
¼ cup olive oil
¼ cup water
5 garlic cloves, minced
Dash soy sauce
2 tablespoons dijon mustard
1 tablespoon honey
Pat the tenderloins dry in either a towel or with paper towels. Once dry, smear the butter over both sides of the tenderloins. Season both sides of the tenderloins with salt and pepper to taste. Combine the herbs together in a small bowl and rub the mixture over both sides of tenderloins.
In a shallow dish or large plastic bag, pour in the olive oil, water and bourbon and mix together. Add the garlic cloves, soy sauce, Dijon mustard and honey to the mixture and continue to mix. Add the seasoned tenderloins to the mixed marinade and drench, making sure all sides are covered in the sauce. Season the marinated tenderloins with a final dash of salt and pepper to taste and then seal the plastic bag, or cover your dish if using a bowl, then place into the refrigerator.
Marinate 2 to 6 hours, but a general rule of thumb is the longer you wait, the better the tenderloins will be.
When ready to cook, preheat the oven broiler and position the top rack so the meat will be about 5 to 6 inches away from the heating source. In a shallow pan, broil the pork for 8 to 10 minutes on one side before turning over and broiling the other side for the same amount of time, about 8 to 10 minutes. The internal temperature you will want for pork 145 Fahrenheit. Allow the pork to rest for 5 minutes before slicing.
Serve sliced tenderloin pieces with the horseradish cream sauce on the side or smothered on top.
