Delicious pork loin steaks in creamy shallot and mushrooms sauce – ready in 20 min
One thing that the lockdown has undoubtedly changed is our eating habits. Although I am a confident cook and I enjoy discovering and trying new recipes, prior to the pandemic I was quite often relying on takeaways and lunch or dinner dates.
But with most restaurants being closed, I found myself cooking more often than ever before.
And I hope I’m not wrong by saying that the majority of us have actually improved our cooking skills over the past couple of months.
It’s Veganuary, yet here I am sharing one of my most favourite and quick recipes – pork loins steaks in creamy shallot and mushrooms sauce.
I often feel like pork loin steaks get a bad reputation – people think they are tough and fat, but I find this cut of meat lean, delicious, and affordable. You just need to know how to cook it.
Who doesn’t love tender and flavorful meat that cooks in half the time? This recipe is ready in 20 min – 40 min if you’re cooking and using your own vegetable stock as I did.
Since pork loin steaks are quite lean and thin, they don’t need a lot of time to cook. On the contrary, the longer you cook them, the tougher they will be. I remember having to explain this daily to my customers (I worked in restaurants for years before taking the plunge and blog full time) who were adamant that their steaks would taste better cooked well done.
Ingredients (serve 2-3)
300g pork loin steaks (I bought mine from Waitrose)
250g chestnut mushrooms
100g double cream
1 shallot
2tbsp extra virgin olive oil
fresh rosemary
vegetable stock (when I don’t make my own, I use Knorr)
fresh dill and parsley, finely chopped
salt & pepper to taste
Ingredientsfor the vegetable stock (I use Knorr if I don’t have the time to do my own, it is equally as delicious)
2 big carrots
1-2 parsnips
1 onion
3-4 small potatoes, cut in half
fresh rosemary (I also like to add fresh dill and parsley, I used dried one on this occasion as I was running out of)
salt & pepper
Skip this step if you don’t want or have the time to cook your own vegetable stock. I peeled and cut into halves all my vegetables, and put them to boil in my new GreenPan Featherweights Ceramic Non-Stick Dutch Oven (I boil the vegetables for 20 minutes, let the stock cool, and then store it in the fridge).
I’ve spoken before about my love for GreenPan (read the article here), but for those of you who might not be familiar with the brand, GreenPan is passionate about creating sustainable, eco-friendly, and non-toxic cookware.
The GreenPan Dutch Oven from the Featherweights collection is the perfect alternative to the classic cast-iron casserole dish. It’s 50% lighter than a regular cast-iron pot and so much easier to use thanks to the silicone covers (no more burned fingers).
It also heats up three times faster, has an innovative Thermolon Infinity Pro ceramic non-stick coating, and is dishwasher-safe (unlike my other induction pans and pots).
Cooking instructions Rub your pork loins with some salt and pepper.
In a cast iron pan or stainless steel pan (I use my GreenPan frying pan from the Mayflower collection because even if I accidentally overheat my pan, the non-stick coating will not release any toxic fumes) heat 2tbsp of olive oil and cook your pork loin steaks for no longer than 3 minutes on each side.
Remove the pork loin steaks to a separate plate and set aside.
Using the same pan, cook your shallots on medium heat for 2 minutes, then add your mushrooms, fresh rosemary, dill, and parsley and cook for another 5 more minutes. Add your vegetable stock (I use about 50ml, I keep in the fridge the rest of the stock) double cream, and stir to combine.
Return the pork loin steaks to the pan, bring to a boil and let it simmer for 3-4 minutes. Taste and add salt and pepper if needed. Enjoy it on its own or with rice and potatoes. Bonne appétit!
Disclaimer: I received the GreenPan Dutch Oven as a PR product to review and for content purposes. All views and words are my own.
