Bacon-Wrapped Pork Medallions

Pork with BBQ sauce is a classic thing to throw on the grill; take it in a slightly different direction by wrapping your tenderloin in bacon before you cook it. The bacon helps prevent any dried-out tenderloin disasters, and it’s a great way to do something a little different with the presentation.

To get the smaller medallions, start with your raw materials: one tenderloin and several strips of bacon. You might be tempted to start cutting up the tenderloin right away – after all, it’s supposed to end up in small pieces, right? – but hold that thought. It’s actually easier to do it another way.

First, wrap the bacon around the tenderloin with each slice parallel to the others and touching them, but not overlapping. Think of the way it looks when you wear two or three rings on the same finger: the rings might touch each other, but they don’t overlap. Wrap the bacon around the tenderloin like the rings go around your finger; then you can easily cut medallions all of the same thickness by just cutting between the strips of bacon. This makes sure that they’ll cook evenly and you won’t have to fuss around with holding onto little pieces of tenderloin.

Serve your masterpieces with grilled vegetables, over salad, or beside a big bowl of coleslaw, and enjoy!

Bacon-Wrapped Pork Medallions Recipe

SERVES: 4 PREP: 15 min. COOK: 20 min.

Ingredients

• 2 lbs. pork tenderloin
• 8 to 10 bacon slices
• Homemade BBQ sauce
• Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Preparation

1. Preheat your grill to medium-high.
2. Wrap the bacon strips around the pork tenderloin to form an outer shell, securing with 1 or 2 toothpicks per strip of bacon.
3. Slice the tenderloin between each bacon strip to create several small bacon-wrapped medallions.
4. Season to taste with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.
5. Grill the medallions for 5 to 8 minutes per side or until just about cooked through.
6. Brush BBQ sauce onto the medallions and cook for another minute on each side.