Pork Fillets with Leeks and Mustard Sauce

This is from Friday. I'll try to remember what I actually did; it was pretty spontaneous - although based on a Pork Medallions with Leeks and Mustard Sauce from my ole favorite "Le Cordon Bleu: Quick & Light" . It's actually pretty simple, although appears to be lengthy, and has a couple of useful-to-know techniques in it.

Pork Fillets with Leeks and Mustard Sauce

Serves: 2 or 3

Ingredients

• 400 gr pork fillets [13 oz)
• 2 garlic cloves, smooshed
• 2 T soy sauce
• 1 T sherry
• pinch sugar
  
• 1 leek (more wouldn't hurt)
• 150 gr mushrooms [5 oz] ('cause I didn't have enough leeks - and leeks can be boring)
• 3 T white wine, dry (box is fine)
• 1 T olive oil
• 1T butter
• sprig of parsley (decorative) (could be sage, but not thyme)

Mustard Sauce

• 2 shallots
• 1 T olive oil
• pinch sugar
• 2 T white wine vinegar
• ¼ C sherry
• 200 ml chicken stock (or beef) [6 oz]
• 1 T dijon mustard (whole grain would be recommended but I ate it all last week)
• salt
• black pepper, freshly ground

Procedure

1. Trim the fat off pork and neaten up the pieces (cut into natural shaped pieces along the fat interfaces)
• Save all the trimmings (for sauce); even the little bits of fat
2. garlic, soy sherry & a pinch of sugar into a bowl
3. coat pieces of meat and fridge them (even the day before)
   
4. Cut leeks into thick slices (1cm) [½"] , straight or on a nifty diagonal
5. slice mushrooms into slices
6. oil in a saucepan
7. add shallots & pork trimmings and a dash of sugar
• medium heat until slightly caramelized - that is, good and brown, nearly burnt
8. Add vinegar, deglaze the pan (this will smell quite stinky)
• reduce to syrup
9. Add sherry
• reduce to syrup
10. Add stock
• reduce for a quarter hour (at least) until it really coats the back of a spoon well (practically a syrup one might say)
• strain into yet another saucepan
• you can do this a day in advance too
• you'll add the mustard later, at the last minute
  
11. Meanwhile, that is, at the same time, oil & butter into a pan
12. Add leeks & mushrooms, wine and salt, pepper
• Steam them slowly, covered, and for a long time (until good and soft, French, overdone)
• do this the day before if you like. Leave enough liquid to reheat tomorrow
  
13. Now for the meat. Fry the pork fillets for about 90 seconds a side (3 minutes per if you hate good pork)
• until done (as they used to say in culinary school)
14. Almost finished - remove the lid from the leeks and rapidly reduce the liquids to nothing, tossing lightly
    
15. add juices from the pork frying pan to the sauce
• boil rapidly to reduce if it's thin; add hot water if it's too damn thick
• strain yet again
16. Add mustard to sauce and stir
17. Plate the leeks/mushrooms
18. Surround tightly with the pork
19. Pour on the sauce
• I also put a little other sauce I had in the fridge on the plate for contrasting color

Done

Notes

1. Pork's not all fat and calorific like it used to be years and years ago. Don't be afraid of it.
2. The trick is too not eat a half pound of pork at a time. This things nets out to about 4 or 5 ounces of actual meat per person - not excessive.

Short version

1. marinate pork
2. make sauce using the meat trimmings and shallots and stuff; reducing step by step
3. steam the leeks/mushrooms in wine and butter
4. cook the meat
5. assemble the whole lot together

It was fun, for me, having 3 or 4 pans going on the stove at a time. For you too - if you have a dishwasher.