Eat Me in Manhattan! A pork tenderloin worth the trek

From | November 20, 2009
In Guest Blogger

From Guest Blogger Umit Celebi, who also took these photos:

Gentlemen, start your ovens.

What is it that we’re cooking? We’re serving up marinated pork tenderloin. But not just any marinated pork tenderloin. I’m sending you to Todaro Brothers, at 555 Second Avenue in Manhattan. Proceed straight ahead through the front door to the deli department and seek out their “marinated pork tenderloin.”

But why should you make the effort to go to 2nd Avenue and 31st Street, blocks away from the nearest subway, to get an item that is ostensibly available at your neighborhood supermarket? Because I’ve tried many other tenderloins, packaged and fresh, marinated and plain, and nothing else comes close.

Also consider the fact that Todaro Bros. has been in business since 1917 and at its current location since 1961, the year President Kennedy was inaugurated. It’s your civic duty to visit any food store that’s been in business for that long (more on that in later blog posts). But this being my inaugural blog entry let me elaborate on what I’m trying to do.

I am most interested in helping my male brethren produce mouth-watering meals at home. There, I’ve said it. That’s my mission statement. Stand up straight and repeat after me. Boys, we can cook and, (here’s what might set this blog apart), we can grocery shop.

What a word, right, “grocery”? It’s from the French marchand grossier, meaning wholesaler. Oh, and I’ll be talking more about words and history and politics and all manner of things, but there will always be some tried-and-true food advice. I’ll tell you what to shop for and where to shop for it, and I’ll tell you how to prepare it at home.

I mean look at this tenderloin. Wouldn’t you want to take this home and cook it? Here it is in all its display-case glory: Todaro Bros.’ Marinated Pork Tenderloin, $7.98 per pound, “well trimmed” and marinated in olive oil, garlic, oregano, salt and pepper. And the best part? You don’t have to do anything to it.

Just pop the pork in the oven heated at 450 degrees F. and cook for 15 to 20 minutes a side. (If you don’t have a temperature display, let the oven heat for 15 minutes.) Put the tenderloin on a rack in a roasting pan, and put it on the middle rack of your preheated oven. Cook the pork on its first side for 20 minutes. Turn the meat over and cook for another 20 minutes. (For tenderloins weighing less than a pound, try the meat after 15 minutes on the second side.)

Look at the color at the center of a slice from the middle of the tenderloin and/or taste a small slice. With pork tenderloin you are not looking for “rare” or “medium rare.” It really needs to be an even color from the edge of the slice to the center.

One tenderloin piece, typically weighing three-quarters of a pound, is perfect for a main dish for two, and is best cooked the same day you buy it.

Now, of course, you will want to embellish the plate with apple sauce or stewed apples (click here for the recipe), rice or potatoes, vegetables, etc. But trust me: Todaro Bros.’ Marinated Pork Tenderloin is the critical part of a meal you’ll want to revisit over and over again. It’s easy. Just head to Second Avenue between 30th and 31st Streets, fork over roughly eight bucks and a fabulous dinner is all yours.

Afiyet olsun! (That’s bon appétit in Turkish.)

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Comments

From Pat Hoffmeister - November 20, 2009

What is someone to do who doesn't live in New York. Any suggestions?

From Beverly Mills - November 20, 2009

Well, there are perhaps a couple of ways to view this.....read it for pleasure and sort of like a voyeur in the same way you might read a travel-type piece in Food and Wine (or any other food magazine), or get a pork tenderloin and marinate it in the ingredients lists, roast it as Umit suggests and see what happens! Does this perspective help? Thanks! Bev

From Liza Bennett - November 20, 2009

Wonderful blog! In regards to being outside of Manhattan, I wonder if our intrepid blogger — after giving Todaro Bros. such aterrific free publicity — could perhaps ask them for their secret recipe? Many of the food magazines run these, I know, when subscribers write in about restaurant dishes they've enjoyed.

From Beverly Mills - November 20, 2009

Well there's an idea!

From Myra - November 20, 2009

After reading Umit's blog this morning I have taken a pork tenderloin out of the freezer to thaw...it sounded like the perfect welcome home dinner tonight for our college freshman and my husband loves to try his hand at new recipes.

From Beverly Mills - November 20, 2009

Okay so you just got voted our official Test Kitchen for this recipe! Take notes so you can tell us exactly what you did if it turns out well! (Which I'm sure it will.....) Thanks Myra!

From Neil - November 21, 2009

Boys we can cook and we can grocery shop! Umit...thanks for the Mission Statement and the pork tenderloin tips. As Myra noted earlier, she took the tenderloin (2 tenderloins each about 2 inches thick weighing a little over 1 pound each) out of the freezer and before I knew it our house became the Test Kitchen for those not located within shopping distance of Todaro Bros. Let me start by saying the results were excellent and a big hit at our house. Using the guidelines and description you provided I was ready to go. After the tenderloin thawed I marinated it for a couple of hours in 1/2 cup olive oil, 2 tbsp refrigerated minced garlic, 1 tsp pepper, 1/2 tsp salt, 1 tsp garlic powder and 2 tsp oregano. I know it seems like a lot of garlic but the taste was not overpowering. After placing it in the oven on a rack in a 9x13 pan, I cooked it at 450 until it reached an internal temperature of 150 (approximately 30 minutes). Since it was on a rack I did not turn it during the cooking. I also let it sit for 10 minutes after removing from the oven to let the internal temperature rise to 160. I was concerned about undercooking the meat but did not want to overcook and end up with a dry pork tenderloin (has happened before in my kitchen!). I checked a few websites and the recommendations were all over the map (145 to 170 internal) so I went with the recommendations at http://www.theotherwhitemeat.com/Resources/Images/2924.pdf To top it off I used the drippings in the pan to make a quick sauce. Placing the pan on the stove top I added half a beef bouillon cube, 1/2 cup water, 2 tbsp white wine and 1 tbsp corn starch. Scraping the pan and bringing to a boil this only took a couple of minutes. My family said it was delicious! The pork tenderloin was a wonderful way to welcome our daughter home from college for Thanksgiving. Thanks Umit for the inspiration. I am looking forward to more from "Eat Me in Manhattan" and bringing the big city south to our North Carolina kitchen.

From Beverly Mills - November 21, 2009

Thanks so much Neil!

From Pat Hoffmeister - November 22, 2009

Thanks Neil! Can't wait to try this.

From Umit Celebi - November 22, 2009

Myra and Neil, Thank you so much for your feedback. Yours are the first responses and I'm very touched. Indeed the time in the oven is crt-ti-cal. And I'm glad you measured the temp internally - best way. I'm so happy to know that it inspired you to take out a neglected piece of meat and go for it! Thank you again, Umit

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