For this pork with chanterelles and apricot jam, roasted pork tenderloin is smothered in a buttery sauce of mushrooms, white wine, chicken stock, and apricot jam. It’s elegant enough to serve to company and is ready in under an hour.
Adapted from Eugenia Bone | Fantastic Fungi Community Cookbook | Insight Editions, 2021
I got into mushroom hunting when my family and I started spending time in Colorado’s North Fork Valley on the Western Slope of the Rocky Mountains. In the late summer, if there are monsoonal rains, the chanterelles proliferate, and we collect pounds of them. The apricots are in season about the same time. Colorado chanterelles have an intense apricot perfume, and because pork is a sweet meat, this pairing was a no-brainer.–Eugenia Bone
Pork with Chanterelles FAQs
Chanterelle mushrooms are famous for their gorgeous yellow-orange color, their lovely blossom-like appearance, their relatively short season (and resulting scarcity most of the year – fresh chanterelles are typically in season in the late summer and fall), and for their spectacular flavor, which is peppery, earthy, and a bit fruity.
Slip a boning knife (or other sharp, narrow knife) between the silver skin and the meat. An important safety precaution to take is to cut away from yourself. With the blade pointing away from you, hold the silver skin in one hand and slowly start cutting away the silver with the other, working your knife along the skin. Keep the blade tilted upwards a smidge so that you’re not cutting too deeply and removing some of the actual meat. This is also a good time to remove any unwanted fat from your meat.
In this recipe
Pork with Chanterelles and Apricot Jam
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 pounds pork tenderloin silver skin removed
- 2 garlic cloves peeled and smashed
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1 tablespoon (1/2 oz) unsalted butter
- 6 ounces fresh chanterelles whole buttons, or large mushrooms, cut in half pole to pole
- 1/3 cup dry white wine
- 1/3 cup store-bought or homemade apricot jam
- 2/3 cup canned chicken broth or homemade chicken stock
Directions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C).
- Rub the pork with garlic cloves and salt and pepper. Let the meat rest while you cook the mushrooms.
- In a medium skillet over medium-high heat, melt the butter. When the butter is foamy, add the mushrooms and cook until they release their water and the water evaporates, 7 to 10 minutes.
- Splash in the wine and continue cooking until it is mostly evaporated, 2 to 4 minutes more. There should be 2 to 3 tablespoons of liquid in the bottom of the skillet.
- Place the pork in a roasting pan and roast until just beginning to color, but not cooked through, about 20 minutes.
- Meanwhile, in a small saucepan over medium heat, combine the apricot jam, chicken stock, and salt and pepper to taste. Bring to a gentle boil and cook until the jam dissolves and the sauce is viscous and slightly reduced, 7 to 8 minutes. Add the sauce to the mushrooms.
- Remove the pork from the oven and pour the mushroom sauce over it, then return it to the oven and cook until a thermometer inserted in the meat reads 145°F (63°C), 10 to 15 minutes more. Baste the pork with the sauce a few times to keep it moist.
- Remove the pork and let it rest for a few minutes, then place on a cutting board and slice.
- Place slices on a serving platter and cover with the chanterelle sauce.
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Recipe Testers’ Reviews
I love dishes that are quick and easy to make but will have your guests oohing and ahhing because the dish looks so delicious and quite complex to prepare. And this pork with chanterelles and apricot jam fits the bill perfectly with its mouth-watering appeal and perfect combination of flavors. What’s not to like when you combine pork, mushrooms and apricots?
The cooking times in the recipe all worked well and the pork was very moist and flavorful. Sometimes pork tenderloin can be on the dry side, but that did not happen in this case. Basting it a few times while it is roasting with the mushroom sauce will go a long way in keeping the pork moist and tender.
This is a nice and easy recipe to prepare. The apricot and mushroom glazing sauce add a nice umami sweetness to the tenderloin that was wonderfully tender and juicy, with a hint of pink in the center, perfection. I‘m thinking that the next time I make this I’ll increase the apricot from 1/3 cup to 1/2 cup to give it a better glaze.
Not only did this recipe work, but it was super easy, and the finished dish was delicious. Do not hesitate to make this pork with chanterelles and apricot jam on a weeknight.
If roasting a lean cut of meat makes you somewhat nervous, you are not alone. Unlike a dish that doesn’t taste quite right, overcooked meat is hard to turn around. Well you’ve got nothing to worry about with this recipe. I coasted through it, and ta-da, the pork tenderloin came out just perfect with the middle faintly soft pink. The pork took a little longer to cook—both the initial roasting and after it went back in the oven—but that’s never a big deal since every oven is different. My pork was in the fridge until I was ready to rub it with garlic.
The apricot sauce was another thing that makes this recipe something to write home about. Just simmer two ingredients—a piece o’ cake, yes? It was savory with a fruity note, and together with the mushrooms, it was fantastic with the pork. It was so good I’ll think of making the apricot/buttery mushroom concoction for pork chops or even chicken. Can’t find chanterelles? I didn’t, so I used a combination of maitake and shiitake, and they were fabulous!
I served the pork with rice pilaf, dried cherries, and pistachios (I replaced dried cherries with dried low-sugar cranberries).
This pork with chanterelles and apricot jam recipe was a treat to prepare. It is rare to find a recipe that adheres to the suggested timeline so beautifully. As there are only two people at home, I used one pork tenderloin, which provided ample servings for two. I did not make any adjustments to the proportions for the sauce. This is a Tester’s Choice candidate for both flavor and ease of preparation. Perfect for a weeknight meal. A novice cook would be able to produce an elegant meal with little effort. The recipe supplies a lot of sophistication with very simple ingredients.
I substituted a mushroom medley of Portobello, oyster, and shiitake mushrooms for the chanterelles. I sliced them pole to pole as directed in the recipe. This approach did not work that well with the oyster mushrooms. I decided to slice the portobellos and shiitakes in multiple slices instead of splitting them in half.
I was initially concerned that the tenderloin would be underdone when I first placed it in the oven. I turned it once halfway through the first 20 minutes of roasting. It was not particularly golden. I was pleasantly surprised that after the addition of the sauce, the tenderloin reached 145° in 30 minutes. The meat was moist and slightly pink. It was perfect. I served the tenderloin with black pepper mashed potatoes and roasted brussels sprouts with pomegranate molasses.
If ever there was a recipe I would make again without hesitation for family or company, it would be this pork with chanterelles and apricot jam recipe. A mere seven ingredients, easily obtained and some already in your pantry, prepared with surprisingly minimal effort, yet yielding a tender pork tenderloin packed with flavor. From the start, you could see the flavors build.
First, a simple, salty, garlicky rub for the pork, followed by a sauté of mushrooms (I used baby Bellas) in butter and white wine, ending finally with a sauce perfectly balanced between the sweet apricot jam and savory chicken stock.
After resting 5 mins, I cut into perfection; tender, slightly pink pork, with a fabulous earthy, sweet and savory mushroom sauce. I served it with buttered mashed potatoes and roasted asparagus. There was just the right amount of sauce per portion (4 people) but I wouldn’t hesitate to double it next time as it was so good and simple to make. Truly, an effortless, yet elegant little dinner!
My husband and I enjoy mushrooms of any type and especially love chanterelles, so I knew we had to try this dish. We were not disappointed. While we found that the pork was a touch dry after the recommended cooking time, the overall dish was delicious.
The apricot jam added just the right amount of sweetness to the sauce. My only complaint is not enough sauce! The next time I make this dish I will definitely increase the amount of sauce. This is a great choice for a weeknight meal because it is a simple recipe and, other than the chanterelles, uses ingredients I usually have on hand. However, it is “special” enough to serve guests. I served this with garlic mashed red-skinned potatoes and fried apples.
Originally published April 8, 2022
