Pork Tenderloin with Bleu Cheese Bacon Whipped Potatoes & Dri

This is a three-component restaurant plate you can pull off at home. Grilled pork tenderloin sliced into medallions, whipped potatoes loaded with crumbled blue cheese and crispy bacon, and a dried cherry sauce built on port wine and veal demi-glace. Each element is straightforward on its own, and together they make a plate that looks and tastes like a special occasion.

The dried cherry port sauce is the star. Dried cherries plump in simmering port wine and demi-glace, creating a rich, glossy sauce with concentrated fruit sweetness and a deep, wine-dark flavor. It takes about 10 minutes on the stove, and you can hold it warm while the pork grills.

The whipped potatoes get beaten until fluffy with an electric mixer, then butter, heavy cream, crumbled blue cheese, and crispy bacon all get whipped in. The blue cheese melts into the hot potatoes and creates pockets of tangy, funky richness that pair beautifully with the sweet cherry sauce on the pork.

Chef Tips

• Grill the tenderloins over medium-low coals and turn them occasionally. Pork tenderloin is lean and dries out fast over high heat.
• Slice each tenderloin into medallions after resting for 5 minutes. Cutting immediately lets all the juices run out onto the board.
• Fry the bacon until truly crispy before crumbling. Chewy bacon in whipped potatoes feels undercooked and greasy.
• Fan the medallions around the potato mound on the plate and spoon the sauce over just the pork, not the potatoes. The blue cheese and cherry flavors are best kept distinct.

Variations

• Swap dried cherries for dried cranberries and use a dry red wine instead of port for a sharper sauce.
• Use Gorgonzola instead of blue cheese for a milder, creamier tang in the potatoes.
• Add a drizzle of balsamic reduction over the plated medallions for another layer of sweet acidity.