Porcini Porcine

It is not a great picture, but we were hungry and I didn?t have the willpower to take too many shots. Once, I saw a brief snippet of show in which the chef, pulverized dried porcini?s to make a crusted meat. I have been intrigued ever since, but just finally got around to trying it out.

I started with about a 2.5 pound pork loin and marinated it for 4 hours. The marinade was equal parts Dijon, white vinegar, and soy sauce (I used about ¼ c. each). Before I was ready to cook the meat, I turned the oven to 425 degrees. I coated the meat slightly with some oil (I used olive, but any would be fine). While allowing the oven to come up and preparing the curst, let meat sit at room temperature.

Start with 1/3 cup dried mushrooms (I used porcini) in the food processor. Pulse it to get a course meal like consistency. You will have some larger pieces in there, don?t worry about it.

Add to the processor

3 garlic cloves (less if you like less garlic)
¼ cup bread crumbs (I used Italian)
1 TBS onion salt

Pulse to combine. Roll loin in mushroom crust and place in a baking dish. Add any leftover mushroom to the bottom of the pan and sprinkle a bit of oil over (or you can deglaze with a bit of stock once the meat is done), it will form a nice gravy/sauce.

Cook covered for 15 minutes, then remove foil and cook for an additional 15 or until done (meat should feel firm to the touch).

Let stand for about 10 minutes and serve.