For a couple of stay-at-home people, this has turned out to be a very interesting summer. Granted, we will be flying off to Italy in a few weeks. But what I had anticipated as a quiet summer has yielded some unanticipated surprises. I will share some of it with you in a later post.
We have done very well with our diet plan. David has lost 15 pounds. I have lost 6 pounds. I ran across this recipe for Rum-Glazed Pork Skewers with Coconut Rice on Twitter and thought the pork sounded delicious. I debated about including the coconut rice, as we have been avoiding carbs, but the addition of lite coconut milk, minced ginger and lime zest to jasmine rice was just too much to pass up. So I have classified this as A TREAT.
The Pork Tenderloin cubes are marinated in all-spice, cayenne pepper and oil. Then they are glazed with a rum, brown sugar mixture as they grill. With the addition of red bell peppers and red onion to the skewers, they were so good. David said they would have been even better with more of the vegetables.
This made 4 skewers. It would make a great company meal and is easily doubled. We have a busy few weeks ahead of us. I have lots to do to make my house picture perfect and plan our Italy trip. I will keep you posted on what is happening.
RUM-GLAZED PORK SKEWERS WITH COCONUT RICE ( Fine Cooking Magazine )
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- 3 Tbs. unsalted butter
- 1 Tbs. minced fresh ginger
- 1 cup jasmine rice
- 3/4 cup well-shaken unsweetened coconut milk
- Kosher salt
- 1/3 cup dark rum
- 3 Tbs. packed dark brown sugar
- 2 medium limes, finely grated to yield 1 tsp. zest and squeezed to yield 1/4 cup juice
- 2 Tbs. vegetable oil; more as needed
- 1 tsp. ground allspice
- 1/8 tsp. ground cayenne
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 1 1- to 1-1/4-lb. pork tenderloin, cut into 1-inch cubes
- 1 medium red bell pepper, cut into 1-inch squares
- 1 red onion, cut into 1-inch pieces
- Lime wedges for serving (optional)
Melt 1 Tbs. of the butter in a 2-quart saucepan over medium heat. Add the ginger and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the rice and stir until well coated. Add the coconut milk, 1-1/2 cups water, and 3/4 tsp. salt; bring to a simmer. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and cook until the liquid is absorbed, about 15 minutes.
Fluff with a fork, cover, and set aside. Meanwhile, combine the rum, brown sugar, 2 Tbs. of the lime juice, and the remaining 2 Tbs. butter in a 1-quart saucepan. Bring to a simmer over medium heat and cook until syrupy, about 5 minutes. Stir in 1/8 tsp. salt and remove from the heat.
In a medium bowl, combine the remaining 2 Tbs. lime juice with the oil, allspice, cayenne, 1-1/2 tsp. salt, and 1/2 tsp. black pepper. Add the pork and toss to coat. Thread the pork, bell pepper, and onions onto four 12-inch metal skewers, alternating the meat and vegetables.
Prepare a medium-high (400°F) gas or charcoal grill fire or heat a large grill pan over medium-high heat. Oil the grate or pan. Grill the skewers until seared on all sides, about 4 minutes total. Brush the skewers with the glaze and grill, turning occasionally, until the pork is browned on the outside but still slightly pink in the center, 2 to 4 minutes more.
Add the zest to the rice and fluff. Brush the skewers with any additional glaze and serve with the rice and lime wedges, if you like.
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These sound wonderful Penny! Congrats on the two of you with your weight loss. I have only lost 2 pounds so far. But I have cheated a little.
Hugs,
Penny
Cheating occasionally is OK in my book. Maybe that is why David is doing much better than I am. He has been faithful to the eating plan, plus no alcohol. Ha!
Congratulations to you both on the weight loss. Eliminating carbs really works for weight loss. I couldn’t resist this lovely rice either. We need a treat now and then. And the pork with rum – delicious!
Sam
I just wonder what will happen when we get to Italy Sam. There is no way that we will deprive ourselves of pasta, pizza, porchetta and wine.
I truly enjoy this kind of meal..Kdos on your accomplishments..but how can you keep us waiting..lol?:)
In any event.. kidding apart..I hope all was ok.
It is all good Monique. Thank you.
Penny, I had so many thoughts reading your post.
I love food that is company worthy, yet easy.
How wonderful that you are going to Italy.
Last, but not least, why do men always lose more weight than women? 🙂
You are right Madonna. Men always lose more. Loved your comment. We are excited about Italy.
Well you’ve certainly piqued our interest! Can’t wait to hear all the good things that you have going on! Congratulations on the weight loss and for the delicious recipe! I would love to try this recipe, Penny.
One of the great things was having a famous cookbook author renting our guest cottage. What a surprise when I met her. The other will have to wait until Sept. 4th. Busy, busy . . . .
Congrats on doing so well with your weight loss program, Penny. I don’t think there is anything more difficult than that. The skewers look delicious and your presentation is lovely. I couldn’t pass on the coconut rice either.
Thanks Cathy. When you love food as much as we do, it is sometimes hard to change eating patterns. But I have to say that everything we have been eating has been colorful and flavorful. But sometimes I just need a little rice and really good bread.