Noisettes de Porc aux Pruneaux is an elegant, uncomplicated dish from the Portland (Oregon) Junior League’s 1974 cookbook, No Regrets.  English speakers can easily deduce “Pork” and “Prunes” from the title.  The word Noisettes literally means hazelnuts, but in this context Noisettes de Porc translates roughly as “pork medallions”.   The recipe seems to have roots in the Touraine region of France, renowned both for its wine and lush plum orchards.  A quick google search uncovers dozens of variants for this recipe.  There is a remarkably similar version published in Anne Willan’s Regional French Cooking, a full seven years after the Portland Junior League’s book.

While individual recipes vary, the key elements of Noisettes de Porc aux Pruneaux are as follows.   Prunes are cooked in white wine.  Pork medallions are quickly pan fried, then simmered in the prunes’ cooking liquid until tender.  The pork liquids and all the delicious brown bits are mixed with cream and prunes until thickened, and then drizzled over top of the pork medallions.   Some recipes have very strong opinions on what sort of wine to use – Vouvray seems to be a popular choice – but any dry white wine will do fine.  I used dealcoholized Chardonnay and it was still delicious (no one in our house drinks alcohol, and dealcoholized wine freezes well). Variants may include anything from Dijon mustard to peppercorns to warm spices in the sauce, but the end result is an invariably rich, sweet, and handsomely colored cream sauce.

The original recipe called for pork tenderloin, which I didn’t think was fatty enough to remain tender over a forty-minute simmer.   This is not the fault of the recipe’s author; domestic pork is considerably leaner than it was when the recipe was published, and I’ve had enough tough pork tenderloin to last a lifetime.   I opted instead for two fattier cuts: a streaky boneless pork roast with a thick, fatty lip, as well as a rolled pork belly “roast”.   Both worked well.  The pork belly roast was much more tender but also much more cumbersome – it requires an entirely different preparation.  The recipe I’ve given below assumes you are using pork roast, and hews more closely to the original.

This was a big hit with the family and ridiculously easy to make.  It requires a little bit of advance planning and ninety minutes of cooking but there’s very little active time.  Noisettes de Porc aux Pruneaux demands a starch that can soak up the delicious sauce and a bitter vegetable to balance the richness.   I served this with simple brown-rice-cooked-in-stock and roasted broccolini.   Next time around I will probably serve it with mashed potatoes and asparagus or green beans.   And maybe make a double batch of the sauce and drink it.

No Regrets is not especially rare or expensive, and can still be found occasionally on Amazon.  The Junior League of Portland does not appear to have published a cookbook since the late 90s, but they are still active in the community supporting education and working to eliminate violence against women.