Fage's Good Living Program Part 2: Good Eating...Featuring Pork Tenderloin Gyros with Tomato-Feta Yogurt Sauce

This is my second post in my Fage Good Living, Good Eating, Good Taste series. This time, I’ll be focusing on Good Eating…which is something that’s really easy to do with Fage Greek yogurt! For a long time, I avoided trying Greek yogurt…but Michael loves it as a snack and convinced me to try it. It’s thicker and has a lot more protein than regular yogurt…which means it helps you stay satisfied longer between meals. I discovered this summer that plain Greek yogurt makes an excellent substitution for sour cream in dip and sauce recipes. It gives them a smooth, rich texture and just a bit of tang. 

I want to show you how this works by featuring Fage fat-free plain Greek yogurt in a delicious recipe. Yes, my Fiery Chicken Shawarma features Fage Greek yogurt in both the chicken marinade and a delish drizzling sauce...but I wanted to share a new recipe with you to go with this great promotion. After poking around online for a bit, I came up with a winner: Bobby Flay’s Pork Gyros with Tomato-Yogurt Sauce. I knew that this recipe had just what I was looking for: easy prep, healthy, and lots of great flavor! Juicy marinated pork tenderloin, caramelized sweet yellow onion, and a delicious tomato-feta yogurt sauce make a great dinner.

 The pork tenderloin needs to marinate at least four hours, so unless you tend to eat late – like we tend do at Casa Garcia – you might want to assemble the quick marinade the night before and stash the pork in the fridge until you’re ready to cook it the next day. If nothing else, it’ll let the tasty marinade really flavor the meat! My tweaks to the original recipe were to add a bit of lemon juice and zest to the marinade and caramelize the onions that top the sandwich...and I added a bit of feta, dill, and chopped parsley to the yogurt sauce. Wrap the sandwich in your favorite pita bread…a local restaurant makes the BEST oven-fired pitas…they’re somewhere between a pita and naan.

Pork Tenderloin Gyros with Tomato-Feta Yogurt Sauce

adapted from Bobby Flay via Food Network's website

Step 1:  Make the marinade by combining the following ingredients in a bowl: 1/4 cup olive oil, 1/4 cup red wine, two finely minced or grated garlic cloves, 1 tsp. Greek oregano, the zest of one lemon, and 2 tbs. lemon juice. Whisk to combine and add 1 lb. pork tenderloin to the marinade. Cover and put in the fridge for four hours...or overnight.

Step 2:  Make the sauce by combining the following ingredients in a small bowl: one small container Fage 0% plain Greek yogurt, one grated clove garlic, 1 diced seeded roma tomato, 1/2 cup feta, 2 tbs. lemon juice, 1 tsp. Greek oregano, 1/2 tsp. dill, and 1 tbs. chopped flat-leaf parsley. Stir to combine and let it hang out in the fridge at least an hour before serving.

Step 3:  Preheat oven to 375. Add 1 tbs. olive oil to a skillet over med-high heat. Remove the pork from the marinade, pat dry, and season with salt and pepper. Once the pan is hot, add the marinated pork tenderloin and sear on both sides. Roast the tenderloin for 20ish minutes. While the pork is in the oven, add 1 tbs. olive oil to your skillet. Add one thinly sliced sweet yellow onion and cook until it's golden and soft. By the time the pork is done, the onions will be too.

Step 4:  To assemble the sandwiches, slather about 2 tablespoons of the yogurt sauce on your pita of choice. Top with thin slices of the roasted pork tenderloin, some of the caramelized onions, and a bit more feta for good measure. Fold and eat...and feel free to add a bit of shredded lettuce as well if you like. 

Wow…this sandwich is GOOD! After 4 hours, the marinade gave the pork a subtle Greek flavor…and it was SO juicy and tender. Combined with the sweet caramelized onions, the yogurt sauce, and a big of extra feta sprinkled on top? This sandwich will rival anything you can get from a restaurant. The sauce is thick and luscious thanks to the Fage Greek yogurt…after three hours in the fridge, the flavors combined very nicely. By the way…while I was marinating the pork, I threw in a few leftover chicken tenders from the freezer and cooked them up as well for making sandwiches the next day. If you have chicken on hand, I can vouch that it’s also fantastic in this recipe!

As part of the Foodbuzz Featured Publisher program, I have been entered for the chance to win a trip to Greece courtesy of Fage. You too can enter to win one of three trips to Greece by entering the Fage Plain Extraordinary Greek Getaway here: http://www.fageusa.com/community/fage-greek-getaway.