It’s the time of year that I crave all of the typical comfort foods: pot roast and mashed potatoes, chicken and dumplings, spaghetti and meatballs, BBQ pulled pork and macaroni and cheese (SO GOOD), tator tot hot dish...I seriously could go on and on but I think you get the point: meat and carbs, meat and carbs, meat, and carbs. Repeat.
Today I have a new meat and carb combo for you: pork tenderloin stuffed with bacon, apples, and wild rice. Plus more healthy carbs in the form of veggies! Which, if you didn’t notice, all of the comfort foods mentioned above are severely lacking in.
I seriously cannot say enough about this dish. The ingredients are super simple, but the pork still has a ton of flavor. The wild rice stuffing is made of wild rice (from Minnesota, of course!), onion, apples, garlic, and BACON. Yep, I stuffed pork with pork.
I also made this into a one-pan dish (minus the steps of cooking the stuffing mixture) by roasting the veggies on the same pan as the tenderloin. They require pretty much the same cooking time as the pork (see note below) and it’s just a proud moment pulling out a baking pan that contains your entire dinner. Plus, it makes for a fun presentation if you are serving this to company.
So about those veggies. I like my veggies super crispy and even a little charred, so I was fine with them being in the oven with the pork for the entire 60 minutes that it was roasting. If you want your veggies a little less crispy, wait about 15-20 minutes after putting the roast in the oven to add them.
Also, my pork tenderloin was definitely closer to the 2-pound range, so if yours is bigger, it might need 10-15 more minutes in the oven. I recommend always using a meat thermometer so you can be sure it reaches the appropriate internal temperature.
This felt like a super fancy weeknight meal but actually came together pretty quick! I especially loved that I could clean up all of the dishes while the pork and veggies were roasting, leaving me only one dish (the pan!) to clean after dinner. This would also be perfect for having company over, as there is no last minute prep. Just pull it out of the oven and dinner is served!
This looks incredible, Taylor! Love that this impressive meal is made with just one pan!
Yup, I am definitely craving lots of comfort foods! This pork looks wonderful! And it uses my favorite - wild rice!!
Yum!!! Apples and bacon together in my pork! I bet its so juicy and tasty! This is definitely comfort food at its best!
This sounds so good, thanks for sharing this delicious looking recipe.
Simon