
Life has been a big bowl of cherries lately.
First there was simple yet chic Almond Panna Cotta with Glazed Cherries. Then there was homey, comforting Cherry-Apricot Cobbler with Buttermilk Biscuit Crust.
Today it's Pork Tenderloin with Indian Spiced Cherry and Rhubarb Chutney because I simply could not let cherry season pass without a savory recipe.
Cherries are surprisingly delicious in savory dishes. The key is to balance the cherry's sweet and tart flavors. So if you're using sweet cherries, then pair them with something sour, salty, spicy, or acidic. If you're using sour or tart cherries, then pair them with something sweet or salty.

Cherries are ideal for chutney because their inherent sweetness is enhanced with sharp green onions, acidic vinegar, and spicy seasonings. As for sweet cherries and tart rhubarb -- well you'll just have to try it to believe it.

Pork Tenderloin with Indian Spiced Cherry and Rhubarb Chutney
Serves 4
Print recipe only here.
How to pit a cherry:
Place the cherry on a cutting board. Place the flat side of your knife on the cherry and press gently until it splits. Open the cherry and remove the pit.
Chutney:
1 teaspoon canola oil
2 green onions, thinly sliced (about 1/4 cup)
1 red bell pepper, diced (about 1 cup)
1/2 cup rhubarb, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
1 serrano chili, minced, with some seeds
1 cup fresh cherries, pitted and coarsely chopped
3 tablespoons cider vinegar
1/4 cup honey
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup orange juice
1 teaspoon orange zest
1 1/2 tablespoons fresh ginger, minced
1/2 teaspoon mustard seeds
1/2 teaspoon hot curry powder
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
salt, to taste
2 cups cooked grain of your choice, such as cous-cous, quinoa, or white rice
Pork:
1 1/4 pound pork tenderloin
Salt and pepper
2 teaspoons olive oil
2 teaspoons butter
To make the chutney, heat canola oil in a medium pot over medium-high heat. Saute green onions, red peppers, and rhubarb for 3 minutes, or until slightly softened. Add chili and cherries, cooking for an additional 2-3 minutes. Add the remaining ingredients (vinegar through cinnamon), and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low; simmer uncovered, until thick and reduced, about 30-35 minutes. Allow to cool before serving. Season with salt, to taste. (This chutney will keep for up to 2 weeks if refrigerated in an airtight container.)
Cut the tenderloin into medallions, and season with salt and pepper. Let stand for about 10 minutes.
In a large skillet over medium-high heat, melt 2 teaspoons olive oil and 2 teaspoons butter. Add the pork; cook for 3-4 minutes, until crispy and browned, then flip and cook until browned all over and just cooked through (the meat should be tender).
Place cooked grain on a platter, add cooked pork, and cover with warm fruit salsa. Serve immediately.
Since this dish uses cherries in an unusual way, I'm sending it to Simona of Briciole, this week's host of Weekend Herb Blogging, created by Kalyn of Kalyn's Kitchen. You can check out the new rules for WHB here, then send your entry to Simona.
You might also like:
More tangy rhubarb chutneys:
- Johanna's Cheese Bites with Rhubarb and Chili Chutney
- Laura Rebecca's Grilled Ham Steaks with Rhubarb Chutney
- Lydia's Rhubarb Apricot Chutney
- Where I'm Cooking From's Spicy Rhubarb Chutney

42 comments:
Hi Susan - We had a cherry tree in our yard when I was very little. My Nana used to cook with them, the memory is hazing but something about your post jogged my memory today. Sweet.
And the chutney sounds so tasty!
This may be the first time I've seen cherries in a savory application, and it is just fantastic. Well done. Fruit + pork is always a good combination, and the Indian influence is always a winner in my book :)
Simply gorgeous! I hope to try this soon - I know it will be a family favorite. Mmmm. I love all of the flavors that you combine in this.
xoxox Amy
Ah, cherry season! Ain't it wonderful? I, too, had a cherry tree in my backyard growing up. My favorite kitchen tool is a cherry pitter. It made the recent preparation of a cherry clafoutis a snap!
Oh, wow, the cherry chutney looks phenomenal - just reading down the ingredient list, I feel like I can taste each new flavor popping and layering on top of each other in my mouth.
The chutney sounds amazing, Susan, full of wonderful flavors and surprisingly simple to make. And you know I'm a sucker for anything involving pork. One key to tender, moist pork is to not cook it to death--as you said, until just cooked through. With modern pork production, it can even be a little pink inside and still be fine.
Oh, this just kills me, it looks so good. I'm just imagining what the chutney tastes like with the pork tenderloin. I'm definitely going to make this one!
The chutney sounds delicious and I love fruit in savory dishes.
Those are really terrific photos.
Lovely! I really like that you've departed from the usual with this. I can only imagine how delicious your chutney was with the pork.
That looks incredible! And hooray for another rhubarb recipe, the more the merrier :)
Susan, That chutney of yours looks spectacular! and I can only imagine the taste paired with the pork, Wow!!
Hey I found your blog on technorati and after gazing over it for a while I have to say its impressive.
As a fellow Southern Californian I've had the luck to stumble upon these health foods and it'd be cool to see what you could do with stuff as healthy as that.
lor lynn-I love it when that happens. Food and nostalgia go hand-in-hand.
mark-I'm so pleased you like the combination. Cherries in savory dishes have moved way up on my list.
amy-Great! I hope you like it.
tw-I don't have a pitter. I guess I'm old school. ;)
joanna-Oh, that's so exciting to hear!
terry-So true.
theitaliandish-Let me know how it turns out!
ivy-Me too.
sorina-Thanks so much.
ann-I could eat the chutney by the spoonful.
ames-I agree wholeheartedly. :)
marie-Aw, thanks!
nathan-Welcome fellow Southern Californian! I'm so glad you stopped by!
Oh, I wished I had read this before I used up my pounds and pounds of cherries. BTW, I just made it through your osteoporosis entries. Amazingly good job.
The great thing about these Indian inspired dishes is that once you get beyond the long list of spices...you realize they do the work for you...easy as pie!
Daa cherry & rhubarb, why yes as soon as you say that my mouth tells me that would be wonderful to put together. But I never would have thought to . . .
Great photos Susan!
wow! what a surprising and fresh combination! lovely
def. the first time I saw this combnation in a chutney. It should be really good!
Great recipe for WHB! I love that first photo especially, and guess what, I have that same fork! Wish I had some of this to eat right now!epchf
OMG, that dish looks so tasty and colorful! What wonderful flavors!
Cheers,
Rosa
Great stuff Susan, absolutely delicious! I can't wait for cherries to come in season over here in a rather wet UK.
Cheers
David
That's a really mouth-watering combination, Susan! I'm loving the idea of the Indian spices with the fruit... and then served with the lamb. Yum!
Such fibrant colours, very pretty! Interesting combo, I'm curious how it tastes :)
Hummmm, this looks so yummy Susan! I love the way you mixed cherry, rhubarb and pork, this really looks fantastic! And I'm back from a little vacation... my kids are still home, but I need to get back to work... Take care.
Oh my goodness Susan, this dish literally has me drooling.
The chutney sounds absolutely delicious!
wow, that is just beautiful. simply beautiful. i love the colors of the dish.
oooh! Some recipes make me all giddy and smiley....This is it! I am lovin' this chutney!!! Now, if I didn't just eat the 2 1/2 pounds of cherries I just bought...lol
Oh Wow! The title of this post reads like poetry to me. At least to me! :-)
I want that chutney!!
Beautiful cherries, and such lovely recipes, as always!.
I am working my way into th world of fruit used in savory dishes. I have not yet reached cherry land, where you have set a really great precedent with this great recipe. Love all the photos.
This looks great - I love that you used cherries.
Pork with cherries and rhubarb sounds like a great combo!
This looks and sounds unbelievably good. Look forward to making this chutney. :)
I love cherries in savory dishes! Your pork and cherries looks lip-smacking good. Beautiful, Susan!
can you ever have too many cherries?! I sure can't. This sounds delicious! I'm hosting my first little blog event, it's a cocktail mixing theme. I'd love to see what you come up with!
http://diaryofafanaticfoodie.blogspot
.com/2008/07/
cocktail-and-my-first-event.html
maybelles parents-Why, thanks. I appreciate that.
peterm-That is so true! :)
tanna-It just came to me one day, and they are an amazing pair.
lina-Thanks so much!
anh-It really is good. I swear. :)
kalyn-The same fork? I have good taste then. :)
rosa-Thank you!
david-You're still waiting? :(
forkful-It would be good with lamb too.
linda-It's sweet, tart, and tangy. I just loved it.
cris-Thanks for dropping by!
cynthia-I wish I could give you some. :)
deborah-Many thanks!
jaime-That's my $1.99 bargain dish from TJMaxx. I love it too!
chris-2 1/2 pounds? You've even got me beat! :) Glad it made you all smiley.
zen-I'm a poet, and I didn't even know it. ;)
monica-I appreciate that.
simona-That's awfully kind of you.
s-Thanks so much!
kevin-It really is.
wendy-I hope you do.
karina-Do you? Then you'll love this chutney.
heather-No, of you course you can't! ;) I can't promise, but I'll try. Best of luck with it!
Oh Susan,
I love this .
This looks just phenomenal! I adore cherries but never get much further than stuffing them in my face fresh as soon as I get them home (my favourite summer indulgence). The only way I've ever used cherries in a savoury dish is duck & cherry pie that my mom used to make - highly recommended. Now you've got me thinking cherry salsas...
mine looked a little different, but tasted phenomenal! thanks for the recipe :)
ttfn-Great! I'm glad you enjoyed it!
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