breaded roast pork loin with garlic and herbs

When we go shopping for groceries, sometimes I’m really good about planning the menu ahead of time, and sometimes we just grab things — a pork loin here, chicken breasts there — and say we’ll come up with a recipe later. This roast pork loin was one of the former. I hunted around for a good recipe that I could make with the ingredients I had. Per usual, I ended up combining a number of things from various recipes, and I think it turned out pretty well! The pork itself was moist and flavorful and it is definitely something that we will make again!

Ingredients:

• Boneless pork loin, about 1 1/2 lbs
• 2 T olive oil
• 2 T butter
• 1 T chopped parsley (if fresh; use less if dried)
• 1 T chopped rosemary (if fresh; use less if dried)
• 1+ t paprika (to taste)
• 1-2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 C panko crumbs
• 2 T Dijon mustard

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 F, sprinkle the pork with salt (preferably kosher) and pepper, and, on medium-high heat, warm the olive oil in an ovenproof skillet or dutch oven (the skillets we have here weren’t big enough for the pork loin we had).
2. Brown the pork, turning occasionally, until all sides have been browned, then transfer the pork to a plate or cutting board.
3. Reduce the heat to medium and add the butter, garlic, herbs, and paprika. Cook for about one minute, stirring constantly so the panko crumbs toast evenly. They should be golden. Turn off the heat and transfer the mixture to a large piece of was or parchment paper.
4. Brush the pork with the mustard, as evenly as possible, then roll in the panko mixture, being sure to press down so more of the mixture sticks to the pork.
5. Return the pork to the skillet/dutch oven and put it in the oven to roast until the center of the largest section is 135-140 F, about 40 minutes.
6. Transfer the pork to a cutting board and let rest 10 minutes before cutting ( FYI: while the pork rests, its internal temperature will continue to rise 5-10 degrees).