When I get to the end of winter, but its still too cold to pull the grill out, I turn to more exotic spices to make things more interesting. I had originally tried this method of cooking pork tenderloins for carnitas, and decided I would switch up the seasonings and give this a try. Really easy. We served it over tender shredded green cabbage with no other dressing, and Grace The Girl ate the rice and peas.
For the Pork
2 whole pork tenderloins
2 stalks lemongrass, trimmed
2 tsp red Thai chili paste (you can find this in a specialty store, or check the grocery aisle near the Asian foods
2 cans lite coconut milk
1 can regular coconut milk
1 small onion, quartered
2 cloves garlic, peeled
2 tsp salt
1 tsp white pepper
1 cup jasmine or basmati rice
½ cup frozen peas
1 tsp salt
Rub the port with the salt and pepper
Put the pork, lemongrass, one can of the lite coconut milk, onion and garlic into the slow cooker. Cover and cook on slow for about 4 hours.
Remove the pork to a board and allow it to rest while you finish the sauce.
Strain the liquid into a large sauce pan, and discard the remaining solids.
Add the chili paste and the can of regular coconut milk to the liquid and simmer for about 30 minutes, until it starts to thicken.
While the sauce is reducing, shred the pork. When the sauce has reduced down so that it will coat the pork, toss the pork into the saucepan and turn to coat evenly.
For the Rice:
Thaw the peas in a strainer under cold running water.
Pour the other can of lite coconut milk into a 2 cup measure, and add water enough to make 2 cups. Pour this into a medium sauce pan.
Add the salt, and bring to a boil over high heat.
Add the rice, stir, and lower the heat to simmer, for about 8 minutes, while there is still water on top of the rice.
Add the peas, give it a quick stir, then cover and simmer for another 2-4 minutes. Turn off the heat and let rest until you are ready to serve, then fluff with a fork and ladle the pork over the rice or serve to the side.