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| Pork tenderloin with whisky sauce is a Sevilla specialty. |
I reached for the brandy, the perfect finishing touch for a sauce, and there was none. Instead, I made solomillo al whisky, pork tenderloin in Scotch whisky sauce.
While it seems a little far-fetched—whisky in Spain?—this is actually a favorite dish in Sevilla tapas bar. I always supposed it came about when a cook ran out of brandy and swapped whisky in its place. But, as the story is related by Shawn Hennessey, cognoscenti of tapas in Sevilla, (see her The Curious Tale of Solomillo al Whisky), the dish was invented in the Bar Rioja Pasaje in the late 1960s in imitation of a French dish.
That explains the butter in the recipe, but not the whisky, hardly a French ingredient! Perhaps whisky was intended as a substitute for pricey French Cognac? In fact, the dish is often made with “coñac,” Spanish Brandy de Jerez, in place of whisky.
But Scotch whisky has another connection to Spain. In my liquor cabinet are three bottles of Scotch (all were gifts from guests), one of which claimed that it was aged in Sherry casks. In fact, many of the finest malt whiskies are finished in casks from Jerez, where cooperage is a very ancient and respected craft (the coopers’ guild was established in the 15th century).
That’s another curious tale, of Scotch whisky’s Spanish lineage. Back in the 18th and 19th centuries, Great Britain was a huge importer of Sherry wines which were transported by sea in Sherry casks from ports in Cádiz. Distilleries in Scotland bought the empty wooden barrels, finding them perfect for ageing whisky. Barrel staves soak up as much as 15 liters of liquid; the spirits ageing in the casks extract their essence, contributing aroma and flavor nuances to the whisky. Sherry “seasons” the wood (the term in Spanish is envinar). Oloroso Sherry is the type that contributes the most character.
However, shipping Sherry in casks to Great Britain came to a definitive end in the 1980s, when the Sherry regulating board (DO Jerez-Xérès-Sherry) stipulated that all wines with the official Sherry label had to be, not only made from grapes of vineyards within the denomination, but bottled at origin. In any case, the casks are highly valued for continued use in the solera method of ageing Sherry. They can be used for more than a hundred years.
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| Sherry Cask label. |
The whisky distillers that continue to tout their product as “aged in Sherry casks” are, in fact, buying barrels made expressly for whisky. These casks, made of new oak, are seasoned with young wine and aged for two years. The resulting wine will never become Sherry. After the seasoning it is undrinkable and is used for distillation. The official Sherry board eventually lent its name to the manufacture of casks, in 2015 designating the “Sherry Cask” seal, guaranteeing that the casks had contained wines from the Jerez region. The seal was intended to protect tradition and prevent the name of Sherry casks from being used by operators with no right to it. (Most Scotch whisky is aged in used bourbon barrels; only about 10 percent is finished in Sherry casks.)
If the whisky label says “aged in Oloroso casks,” the cask could come from anywhere, because Oloroso is a style of wine that is made elsewhere—for example, in the Córdoba wine region of Montilla-Moriles. (See this site for more about Demystifying sherry casks in whisky )
Back to my kitchen. The solomillo al whisky is a delicious dish of tender pork in a mellow sauce. I wonder how it would taste made with bourbon?
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| Serve the pork with patatas fritas, Spanish fries. I served it with red wine, but a fine amontillado Sherry would go nicely. |
Pork Tenderloin in Whisky Sauce
Solomillo al Whisky
Variations are fine. Substitute Brandy de Jerez for whisky. Use ibérico pork instead of regular pork. Slice the tenderloin thickly or thinly. (Just take care not to overcook it.) Thicken the sauce by swirling in cold butter or with a little cornstarch. My cheat: add a small knob of dark miso paste to the stock. The fries are not negotiable; serve them alongside the meat. You could even make double the quantity of sauce and serve them over the fries as well. Accompany with bread.
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| Sear pork medallions, then add to sauce. |
Serves 4
1 ¼ pounds pork tenderloin
Freshly ground black pepper
Sprigs of thyme
1 lemon, grated peel and 2 teaspoons juice
3 tablespoons olive oil
8 cloves garlic
Onion wedge
Sliced mushrooms (optional)
¾ cup Scotch whisky
1 cup chicken or meat stock
Salt to taste
1-2 tablespoons cold butter in pieces (optional)
1 teaspoon cornstarch (optional)
Chopped parsley
Fried potatoes to serve
Remove excess fat and membrane from the tenderloins. Cut medallions about 1-inch thick. Sprinkle them generously with pepper, a few sprigs of thyme, and grated lemon peel. Allow the meat to come to room temperature.
Heat a heavy skillet on medium-high. Oil the skillet lightly and sear the tenderloin slices on two sides, removing them as they are browned. They do not need to cook through.
Add remaining oil to the skillet. Lightly crush the garlics to split their skins, but don’t peel them. Add the garlic to the skillet with the onion wedge and mushrooms, if using. Fry them on medium until onion begins to brown. Add the whisky and cook off the alcohol, 1 minute. Add the stock. Add salt to taste. Bring to a boil, lower heat, and cook the sauce 15 minutes. Stir in 2 teaspoons of lemon juice.
Return the slices of tenderloin to the skillet and cook them until thoroughly heated. Remove the meat. Thicken the sauce by either 1.) swirling in cold butter with the skillet off the heat or 2.) mixing cornstarch with a little water, whisking into the sauce, and cooking until thickened slightly.
Serve immediately garnished with the peeled cloves of garlic, mushrooms, if using, and chopped parsley. Serve with fries.
More about Sherry wines and how they are made: Celebrate Sherry!
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