Ingredients
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- 8 large cloves garlic, thinly sliced crosswise
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin, or more to taste
- 1/3 cup lime juice
- 1/3 cup orange juice
- 1 1/2 teaspoons coarse salt, or more to taste
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon ground oregano
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro or mint
- 2 to 3 pork tenderloins (1 1/2 pounds total)
- 2 large sweet onions, cut into 1/2-inch-thick slices
- 1 navel orange, peeled and sectioned with membranes removed, for serving
Directions
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Prepare the mojo: Heat the oil in a deep saucepan over medium heat
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Add the garlic and cumin and cook until the garlic is fragrant and a pale golden brown, 1 to 2 minutes
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Do not let the garlic brown too much, or it will become bitter
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Stir in the lime and orange juices, salt, pepper, and oregano, and 1/3 cup water
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Stand back: the sauce may sputter
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Bring the sauce to a rolling boil
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Taste for seasoning, adding salt or cumin as necessary
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Let cool to room temperature, then stir in the cilantro
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Trim, fold, and tie the pork tenderloins, as shown in Preparing the Meat, Steps 1 through 5 on pages 124 and 125
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Arrange the tenderloins in a nonreactive baking dish just large enough to hold them
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Pour half the mojo over the pork and let marinate, covered, in the refrigerator for at least 3 hours, preferably overnight, turning to ensure even marinating
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Refrigerate the remaining mojo to serve as a sauce
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Set up the grill for direct grilling (see page 10 for charcoal or page 16 for gas) and preheat to high
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When ready to cook, brush and oil the grill grate
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Arrange the tenderloins on the grill
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Brush the onion slices with any excess marinade, skewer them crosswise on skewers or toothpicks, and place on the grill
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Grill the pork and onions until cooked to taste
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The meat will take 3 to 4 minutes on each of its four sides, 12 to 16 minutes in all for medium
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To test for doneness, insert an instant-read meat thermometer in the thickest part of the meat
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The internal temperature should be about 160 degrees F
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Rotate the tenderloins 90 degrees after 2 minutes on each side to create an attractive crosshatch of grill marks
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The onions should be nicely charred after 4 to 6 minutes per side
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Transfer the tenderloins to a cutting board and let rest for 3 minutes
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Slice the tenderloins crosswise on the diagonal
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Fan out the slices on plates or a platter and top with the unskewered grilled onions
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Spoon the reserved mojo over them, garnish with the orange sections, and serve at once