PORK STROGANOFF WITH LEEKS AND MUSTARD

How was your weekend? Mine was very nice - Arabella bought Barnaby Bear home from school so we took him for an adventure in Covent Garden on Friday night to see all the Christmas decorations and lights and also go to our favourite "restaurant" Shake Shack!! 

Now it's Monday and I was tempted to go back to Covent Garden again to show Pascal how Christmassy it is - the huge Christmas tree and reindeer, the model Lego London snow globe, the window displays, the lights....but I knew if we went we would have several g&ts, a huge supper and lots of wine!! I am trying to do bikram everyday this week and it doesn't mix well with a hangover. 

So instead we cooked something yummy at home - Pork Stroganoff with Leeks and Mustard. Now I would recommend you cook this with rice on the side, we didn't and I did not miss it, but Pascal certainly did!!

Ingredients for 2 people;

25g unsalted butter (I used salted as that is what we had and it did not make a difference)
2 tsp olive oil
4/5 leeks, thinly sliced 
350g pork tenderloin, cut into thin strips (I couldn't find tenderloin in the supermarket so bought escalopes)
150ml dry white wine
300ml half fat creme fraiche
3 tsp wholegrain mustard
2 tsp English mustard
5 tsp chopped fresh tarragon 

In a large frying pan, heat the butter and the oil, and then fry the leeks until just softened, this takes about 2-3 minutes.

Transfer to a plate using a slotted spoon so you leave the oil. Add the pork to the hot pan and cook for 6-7 minutes until lightly browned (we had to add a little more oil). As I mentioned before we used escalopes and they took less time to cook, about 4 minutes.

Next add the wine and allow to reduce slightly by simmering for 2-3 minutes.

Meanwhile, open the tub of creme fraiche and stir in both the mustards. Add this mixture to the pork, stir, and then return the leeks to the pan and mix together.

Cook for 2-3 minutes until the cream has thickened slightly, the pork is cooked through and the juices run clear when pierced with a fork.

Finally stir in the tarragon and season with freshly ground black pepper and then serve.

This is one of my favourite recipes - it is perfect for a winter's day. Really warming and everything really goes together, plus it feels naughty but then really isn't too bad calorie wise (about 700 calls). I am not the biggest vegetable fan (don't tell my daughter!) - I much prefer salad or fruit but then the leeks are absolutely delicious here especially with the pork and mustard. As I said earlier Pascal thinks this recipe could do with some rice - I am sure the rice would be fabulous with it as it would soak up the sauce, but I think it tastes just as good without it too. 

It is another great mid week recipe as it literally takes about 20 minutes in total to cook and is very easy. You could also exchange the leeks for mushrooms if you like - I might include them both next time I do this....plus rice for Pascal!