Roast Pork Loin with Balsamic, Dijon, and Thyme

Today's adventure in cooking is brought to you by Kitchen Confidante! I tried out this recipe because I had fresh thyme to use up, and wanted to make something a little special to welcome my husband home from a trip but also not have to go to the store because the weather was supposed to be awful.

I think the marinade was supposed to turn out a little thicker than mine did. I think it was because I used jarred minced garlic instead of fresh and perhaps a little too much oil or vinegar (I eyeballed things rather than measuring exactly). The only thing I did differently was not sear it before roasting it in the oven. I thought searing it after marinating was kind of an odd choice, technically speaking. Plus, the last time I tried to sear a marinated pork loin, the marinade on it burned and I had a hell of a time cleaning the pan. (It had a significant amount of sugar in it which probably didn't help, and this recipe seems to have less but the searing after marinating idea still seems strange to me.)

I served it with oven roasted potatoes (with thyme and onion) and steamed broccoli, and we cooked and reduced the marinade to serve as a sauce, which was pretty salty and garlicky.

Personal verdict: It was good but not exceptional -- I wouldn't go out of my way to make it again. Still searching for a go-to pork loin preparation. Pork tenderloins seem to be far too easy to eat too much of but I think it's because they're inherently appealing, like you could put just about anything on it and it would taste good. My favorite so far was a garlic parmesan pork tenderloin I had at a Brazilian rodizio grill. If I could find a good recipe for that...

RECIPE: Roast Pork Loin with Balsamic, Dijon, and Thyme