Holiday turkey dinner. Are there words that strike fear in the hearts of cooks more effectively than holiday turkey dinner? Probably not. Turkeys are just not made oven friendly. Add the 17 sides that everyone expects and you have a ridiculous task in front of you. Stop. Think. Why do you need 17 sides? What is the point exactly? Have you ever been to a great restaurant that put 17 sides on the plate? It makes no sense at all. None.

Why not execute 5 things perfectly instead? Turkey, dressing, mashed potatoes, gravy and one vegetable. Who wouldn’t be happy with that? Quality over quantity. Pick your battles. Pick the ones you can win.

This isn’t a recipe but the recipes are all here. It’s a guide to making a great holiday dinner. Moist turkey – dry brined. Dressing – lifted from the fabled Zuni Cafe chicken with bread salad. Gravy – think reduction for depth of flavour. Mashed and a vegetable I will leave to you although I’m a fan of roasted brussel sprouts .

The turkey is the only really hard part. If you’re serving an army I can’t help you. If your dinner table seats 10 or less though, I can pretty much guarantee a moist, juicy bird.

Dry brining and flipping your turkey are the keys to a perfect holiday turkey.

Stuffing soaks up all the wonderful juices that will make your gravy memorable. Make a Zuni Cafe inspired dressing instead.

Gravy is the thing that brings it all together. This gravy is worthy of a michelin starred restaurant.

I’m not suggesting you abandon all your family classics. I’m just thinking maybe if you streamline, the whole meal will come together better and you might actually be able to enjoy your meal for a change…

Pork piccata is a great alternative to the more obvious chicken piccata. It’s easier to prep. It’s less likely to dry out. And it has more flavour. What is not to love here?

Does the world need another chicken piccata recipe? I’m pretty sure not. And yet, here I am doing it. I justify it to myself because I have two observations to share.

One – why so much lemon? I see recipes with the juice of two lemons. Two lemons. That’s half a lemon per portion. Then they claw back the acidity by adding a bunch of butter. It’s adding calories to hide a flaw. Crazy.

Two – it’s always chicken (or maybe veal). I like pork piccata. It’s more forgiving than chicken and much cheaper than veal. Tasty, forgiving and cheaper. You decide. Maybe I’m the crazy one here. Wouldn’t surprise anyone. But I think pork piccata works…

I’ve used pork tenderloin here. If you wanted bigger pieces maybe a small loin could sub in but you’d need to be careful because you run the risk of tougher meat. The tenderloin is pounded a bit so it’s a fair size. Kind of veal picatta size.

And for the record, they are adding butter to balance a ton of lemon so they can add more butter. Fat tastes good. But it’s a lot of calories for not much gain.

Pork piccata is a nice alternative to the ubiquitous chicken. Tender pork tenderloin comes together with lemon, capers and a bit of butter. - 1

pork piccata

Ingredients

  • 1 14 oz ounce pork tenderloin
  • flour to dredge the pork
  • 2 Tbsp butter in all
  • 2 Tbsp olive oil in all
  • Juice of 1/2 lemon
  • 1/2 cup chicken stock
  • 1 Tbsp capers
  • Italian flat parsley minced. Don’t use curly parsley.
  • salt
  • pepper

Instructions

  • Remove any silverskin from the pork tenderloin.
  • Cut the pork across the tenderloin into 3/4 inch medallions.
  • Pound the medallions to 1/4 inch thick.
  • Season both sides of the pork with salt and pepper.
  • Heat a heavy skillet over medium heat.
  • Add one Tbsp butter and one Tbsp olive oil.
  • Dredge the pork in the flour and fry until the edges start to turn white, about 60-90 seconds. Only add as much as will fit comfortably in one layer.
  • Flip and cook another 45 seconds to one minute. You don’t want to overcook the pork.Remove pork from pan.
  • Add remaining Tbsp olive oil and repeat with the remaining pork.
  • Deglaze the pan with the lemon juice, stirring constantly. When it has almost completely evaporated add the chicken stock and simmer for about 1 minute.
  • Return the pork and accumulated juices to the pan to warm up the pork. Simmer about a minute. The flour from the pork will thicken the sauce slightly. Add the capers.
  • Off heat add the remaining one Tbsp butter to enrich the sauce. Jostle the pork around a bit to distribute the butter. Awkward but easier than removing all the pork. Adjust seasoning.
  • Sprinkle with Italian parsley.