First of all, let me introduce you to my favorite cooking/recipe blog. Jessie Heaviland is the author/chef behind Bites, and she is my go-to girl for menu planning and new recipes. I also like P-Dub, of course, and I love that you can find recipes based on ingredients you already have around your home on Allrecipes (Did you guys know about this feature? Very helpful if you ask me!), but in my book, Bites wins. Here is another great dinner idea I got from Bites, with a few of my own modifications, of course. This was Justin’s FAVORITE meal while he was visiting us, and I cooked quite a bit while he was here.
PORK PARMIGIANA SLIDERS
Ingredients:
1 pork tenderloin, sliced thin and pounded
Salt and pepper
Flour
2 eggs
Breadcrumbs (plain or Italian Seasoned)
Parsley and/or Fresh Basil
About 1 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano, divided
2 garlic cloves, minced
Olive oil or canola oil, for frying
1 ball fresh mozzarella, sliced (or a cup of shredded mozzarella if you are lazy like me)
1 cup tomato sauce (or spaghetti sauce)
Italian seasoning
Slider rolls
Instructions:
Warning: This recipe calls for lots of hand/raw meat contact…
Cut the pork tenderloin into slices about 1 inch thick and pound. I cut my tenderloin into ten patties, placed them in a big freezer plastic bag and pounded them with the can of tomato sauce, because that is how Pioneer Woman taught me to do it. I don’t have one of those meat tenderizer thingamabobs…
Dip pork patties into flour mixed with a little salt and pepper. Beat eggs in a shallow dish with a splash of water. Dip cutlets in egg wash. Dredge cutlets in breadcrumbs mixed with parsley and/or basil, half the parmigiana cheese, salt, pepper and garlic. (I added basil to this recipe, because Mr. Basil, my fresh basil plant now sits on my kitchen window sill and I couldn’t resist using my fresh herbs for the first time. I think it was a good decision!) To complete the dipping process, I got my three bowls (flour, egg, and crumbs) lined up in row with a plate at the end, so I could dip, dip, dip and place each breaded pork patty on the plate when I was finished. It worked really well.
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| Introducing: Mr. Basil! |
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| My fingers after the dipping process. Gross! But I’m okay with it. |
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| Ready to fry! |
Heat oil in a nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add patties and fry each side until golden brown. I found it took 3-5 minutes per side. Remove and drain on a paper towel-lined plate.
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| Meanwhile I toasted the buns…for fun. |
Add some tomato sauce to the frying pan. If you are lazy, you can use a half a jar of spaghetti sauce. I used a can of plain tomato sauce and stirred about a tablespoon of Italian seasoning and two shakes of garlic powder into it. Add cooked cutlets back to the pan and top with a little grated parm and a slice (or grated) mozzarella. Turn off heat, but leave pan covered on the stove for a few minutes to melt the cheese.
Serve on Slider rolls and voila!
Oh my gosh, yes! I didn't know you knew about this blog too! We do 90% of our meal planning from her site!! LOVE it!! 🙂 Just another thing I like about YOU!