I think it’s a universal food-truth that you know when meat has been prepared and cooked properly if your knife slides right through it without you having to saw back and forth like your dinner was firewood. Well, this meal takes that one step further: you literally will not need a knife to cut this turkey when you’re done marinating and cooking it.
This marinade is really simple, but also very effective at tenderizing and flavoring meat. The only thing: don’t leave the meat in the marinade for too long, or you’ll end up with meat that’s too tender (yes, such a thing does exist). Personally, I think 6 hours is plenty of time for this potion to work it’s magic.
I decided to use it on turkey tenderloins simply because I just love cooking with turkey. It’s nice and lean and it’s like chicken, in that you can get it to taste like pretty much anything, if you try hard enough. After spending the afternoon in it’s balsamic-dijon bath, my 1.5 pounds of meat was cooked all the way through, and perfectly tender in 25 minutes, which was just enough time for me to roast some Brussels sprouts with walnuts, dried cranberries and brown sugar (I also added some chopped sweet potatoes), which complimented the dish perfectly.
For a dinner that serves up some serious I-just-spent-hours-slow-roasting-this-meat vibes, it really doesn’t get much easier (or more delicious). Here’s how I do it.
Ingredients:
1.5 lbs turkey tenderloins*the marinade can accommodate up to 3 lbs of meat
1/3 cup olive oil
1/3 cup plus 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tbsp honey
1 tbsp country Dijon mustard
2 cloves chopped garlic
Juice and zest of 1 small lemon
2 tsp packed light brown sugar
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp crushed red chilis
1 tbsp Italian seasoning
Directions:
Combine all ingredients for the marinade {oil, vinegar, honey, mustard, garlic, lemon, sugar, salt, pepper and chilis} and pour over the turkey in a zip-top bag. Marinade in the fridge for approximately 6 hours.
When it’s time to cook, preheat an oven to a low broil setting and line a baking pan with deep sides or a broiling pan with aluminum foil. Broil the turkey for 25 minutes, flipping once halfway through.
Remove from oven and let turkey sit for about 2 minutes before slicing. Reserve pan juices and pour over turkey before serving. Garnish with Italian seasoning.
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Yield: 2 tenderloins {1.5 pounds meat}
Serving Size: 1/2 pound
Calories: approx. 190 calories per serving {for just the turkey}
Dietary Info: Gluten-Free