May 3

May 3 Salsa Pork Fiesta Dinner

Dinner, Gluten Free, Paleo, Pork, Sides, Whole30

This dinner is fast, easy, and I included the sides that are perfect with this Salsa Pork! This came together in about 45 minutes total which included: all the chopping, cooking, a temper tantrum, a spill of cauliflower rice, and countless interruptions for potty assistance, questions about snacks, breaking up sibling spats, and trying to get the playroom picked up. So I would say that is a good amount of time... Any other moms out there experience dinner prep like this? It is pretty much every day here, #momlife.

Back to this dinner, it is delicious, healthy, and is a weeknight worthy meal if dinnertime is like mine, survival! Perfect for Cinco de Mayo too if your ideal Saturday is collapsing on the couch with a margarita or glass of rose after the kiddos are down or you are ready for Netflix binge time. These make fabulous leftovers or even meal prepped lunches, that is why I use 2 pounds of pork tenderloin. At my grocery store, you can buy that beautiful lean meat in a pack of 2 tenderloins that comes to about 2 pounds, so golden!

Salsa Pork Fiesta Dinner

Inspired by Cooking Light

Salsa Pork

2 pounds pork tenderloin, into 1" chunks
12 oz jar or 1 1/2 cups salsa, medium heat
1 Tablespoon Taco Seasoning
Spray of avocado oil

Zucchini and Pepper Saute

1 Tablespoon oil, coconut, avocado, or olive
3 large zucchini, large quartered chunks
2 bell peppers, diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoon chili powder
squeeze 1/2 lime
salt and pepper

Cilantro Lime CauliRice

3 cups cauliflower rice
1 lime, zest and juice
1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
1 tablespoon oil
salt and pepper

- Toss pork chunks with taco seasoning and spray a large skillet with oil. Heat the pan to medium-high heat. Add the pork and cook until browned, stirring occasionally. Once the pork is browned, add the salsa, stir, and turn the heat down to low. The salsa will coat the pork and make a sauce and season it at the same time.

- While the pork is going, spread the cauliflower rice on a baking sheet, drizzle with oil, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place pan into a cold oven and heat to 400, check the rice when the oven is preheated, stir and determine if the rice is ready to be taken out or needs more time. I like mine roasted because it adds more flavor! When it is ready, take out and toss in the cilantro, zest, and lime juice.

- In another large skillet, heat the oil at medium-high heat. Add the peppers, zucchini, and garlic, stir and cook until browned. Season with chili powder, salt, pepper, and squeeze of lime juice.

- That is everything, prepped and ready to plate!

Here are the two tenderloins once I took it out of the package, pat dry, that will help them brown! Chop them into big chunks, season, then add to a heated skillet.

While those pork nibblets are cooking, toss some frozen or fresh cauliflower rice with oil, salt, and pepper. Pop that pan into the oven, cold, then set the temp to 400. The rice will cook while your oven preheats, such a time saver! I really like to roast my cauliflower rice to get browned, it helps give it flavor and cuts down on the tooty smell of cauliflower that a lot of people dislike.

Now that you have the pork and rice going, start chopping up your veggie side. I love sauteing zucchini because it takes no time and is flavorful. Peppers are always good with Mexican cooking so it was an easy decision to add those to the zucchini.

Here is everything at once. I was also making basic white rice for my family because they aren't super fans of cauliflower rice. I like Whole30 dinners where I can easily and without much additional effort, make changes my family will eat.

Now comes the salsa part of the Salsa Pork! A cup and a half is perfect, it is also the amount of a jar of Trader Joe's salsa, so pour that whole jar in! That salsa is a little spicy for my kiddos so I like to use Pace. Pour it in and stir around, it will coat the pork and make a delicious sauce.

I remember I used some Pace salsa on eggs one day of my first Whole30 and I totally forgot to check the ingredient list. I panicked, thinking I had ruined the 20-something days of hard work. Then I looked at the label and relief washed over me, simple and compliant ingredients. Sometimes it is suprising what is and isn't compliant, so always check your labels!