Herb Crusted Pork Tenderloin - Recipe

It's no secret that I want to be Paula Deen when I grow up. I had the extreme honor of meeting this wonderfully sweet, talented and just plain funny lady in 2008. So today I'd like to share with you one of her delicious and EASY recipes.

Prep Time: 15 Min. (I LOVE THIS!)
Cooking Time: 1 Hr. 45 Min. (approx. based on size of your roast)
Sit Time: 20 Min.

Ingredients
1 (4-pound) boneless pork loin, with fat left on
1 tablespoon salt
2 tablespoons olive oil
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon dried thyme or 2 teaspoons minced fresh thyme leaves
1 teaspoon dried basil or 2 teaspoons fresh basil leaves
1 teaspoon dried rosemary or 2 teaspoons minced fresh rosemary
Directions

Preheat oven to 475 degrees F.

Place the pork loin on a rack in a roasting pan. (I spray the rack with Pam first to help with clean up.) Combine the remaining ingredients in a small bowl. With your fingers, massage the mixture onto the pork loin, covering all of the meat and fat. Make sure you get the sides as well.

Here's mine ready to go in the oven.

Roast the pork for 30 minutes, then reduce the heat to 425 degrees F and roast for an additional hour. Test for doneness using an instant-read thermometer. When the internal temperature reaches 155 degrees F, remove the roast from the oven. Allow it to sit for about 20 minutes before carving. It will continue to cook while it rests.

Here's my roast fresh from the oven.

A couple more comments. Yes the temp seems high, but trust the recipe. This allows you to roast without pre-searing the meat. Do not overcook! This will cause pork roast to be far too dry. Equip your kitchen with a meat thermometer and pull the roast at an internal 155 as directed. Finally, be sure to let the meat sit the 20 minutes as stated. This allows it to continue cooking slightly but also seals in the juices. Too often folks take roasts from the oven and cut right away. This is a huge roast no no!

And voila! Cut and ready to enjoy. You'll find this roast to me extremely flavorful, moist and easy to compliment with a variety of sides.

The evening I cooked this for dinner, I had a neighbor stop by the door to drop something off. He paid me a lovely compliment asking what was cooking because it smelled delicious!