Boy! I have been getting really lucky dodging the rain! Timing has been everything in trying to miss the storms, popping in and out to grill, but it’s been so very much worth it! I guess I am a true-blue griller now!

I even had my pretty pastel floral umbrella right by the back door off the kitchen just in case. 😉

Hey, I’m still not going to wreck my hair. A grill diva is still a diva! Even if this diva rocks it in a pink t-shirt and jammy bottoms, the hair still has to look good! 😉

One day last week, I had no clue of what I wanted to grill for supper, so I went on a little hunt of my own! I found a package of two beautiful pork tenderloins in the freezer, so the main part was decided! Half the battle won right there!

I had a handful of strawberries left and even a few red grapes left, so what the heck. Why not toss those on the grill, too?! 😀

I had in mind to not overly grill them until all the juices run out and they turn mushy, but just a bit on the outside to get some nice grill marks.

I was curious to see how this was all going to turn out! I mean, I’ve grilled fruit before, but never strawberries or grapes! But I thought that they’d compliment the pork tenderloins nicely, especially if I made the pork nice and spicy!

I knew I had a stash of chipotles in adobo sauce in the freezer, too, and an odd little bottle of apple juice in the fridge. Sounded like a solid plan for a main dish to me! 😉

Now what to make for a side dish….?? Hmmmm. You’ll have to stay tuned until tomorrow to find out what I made to go alongside! 😉

But for now, I can tell you that the pork tenderloin was the best one that I’ve made to date!

I didn’t want to do double-duty making a dry rub and then a mop sauce, too. So I decided to marinate it in a “wet rub”, if that makes any sense. Not a marinade, definitely not a marinade. But a thick moist paste of sorts to do the job all in one shot.

It worked beautifully!

It was so good, I actually could’ve doubled it and basted it with more of the wet rub, but the amount that was on it really was sufficient. It had excellent flavor, wasn’t dry one bit, and yet wasn’t drowning in it, either.

And besides, I had plans for the second pork tenderloin to be stretched into a second dish paired with a secondary sauce all it’s own, so it all worked out perfectly well.

But, if you’re a die-hard dipper fan, you could make more of the sauce just for dipping even. Certainly. 😉

People say that pork tenderloins are difficult to grill. Well, I say boloney!

If you only do them for NO MORE than 20 minutes, let them rest, covered, (to come to temperature and rest the juices), they are truly as good as any beef filet mignon! Not kidding.

The main trick is just not to overcook them because they will dry out if you do. They ARE done when they are still slightly pink in the very center.

Some people actually prefer them to be only cooked to medium-rare, but I need mine a little more done than that! And 20 minutes, keeping the grill temp to right around 375 degrees, seems to be the perfect amount of time, every time.

So don’t be afraid of this beautiful cut of meat! It is the prime cut of the hog and VERY company-worthy yet completely economical!

I just hope this premo cut of pork remains a secret, because you know what will happen if it catches on too much. Look what happened to the price per pound of pieces-parts of chickens that used to either get tossed or used for stock! (Have you seen the price of chicken wings lately? Shameful.)

So let’s keep this a secret, shall we? 😉

So get your grills ready! You’re going to LOVE this one! Happy grilling! 😀

Spicy Grilled Apple-Chipotle Pork Tenderloins with Grilled Strawberries & Red Grapes with Cinnamon

Ingredients

For Wet Rub Marinade:

1 1/2 Tbl. chilies in adobo sauce (*see tip in notes)
1 tsp. chili powder
1 tsp. sweet smoked paprika
1/2 tsp. garlic salt
1/4 tsp. coarse ground black pepper
1/8 tsp. cinnamon
1 Tbl. apple juice concentrate or regular apple juice
1 Tbl. EVOO

Rest of Ingredients:

two whole pork tenderloins, trimmed of fat and sinew
12 large strawberries, hulled
24-32 large seedless red grapes, as desired
1-2 Tbl. EVOO
cinnamon for dusting skewers
vegetable oil for grill grates

Instructions

In small bowl, stir together wet rub ingredients.

Trim pork tenderloins of any fat and sinew, rinse with cold water and pat dry.

Coat each tenderloin evenly with half of the wet rub and place coated side-down into 13x9 glass baking dish. Evenly spread second half of marinade on top of each. Cover and marinate for 2 days for best results. Or at least several hours if in a rush.

Remove form fridge and let come to room temp. (At least 30 minutes, but longer is better.) Heat grill to high heat to get grates nice and hot.

While tenderloin is un-chilling and grill is heating up, thread fruit onto skewers. *If using bamboo, soak in cold water for a bit first.

When grill is hot, reduce heat to medium, and keep at 375 degrees as best you can. Grease grates with vegetable oil-soaked paper towel using tongs and place tenderloins onto grill. Close lid and grill for 5 minutes. Turn, close lid and grill another 5 minutes. Repeat, grilling a total of 20 minutes.

Remove to a platter and cover with foil to rest and finish cooking.

While tenderloins are resting, brush fruited skewers with a little EVOO and place onto grill. Grill with lid open for 10 minutes turning skewers a few times as needed.

Serve tenderloins sliced at an angle topped with grilled fruit lightly dusted with cinnamon.

Notes

*For chipotles in adobo, I like to empty the can into a blender when I open it, and coarse chop to mix. Makes for easier measuring and distributes the peppers and sauce more evenly. I then simply freeze it in a ziploc baggie, and break off chunks any time I need it.