Tenderloin refers to a cut of pig or cow that is the tenderest. It can be prepared in all sorts of ways, but in the lower Midwest, the word refers to a bunned sandwich for which a slice of pork is pounded thin, breaded, and fried to a crisp. Through much of Iowa, Illinois, and Indiana, tenderloins (sometimes called breaded pork tenderloins or simply BPTs), stir opinion and argument no less fervid than that inspired by green chile cheeseburgers in New Mexico and crab cakes around the Chesapeake Bay.
A wide and handsome tenderloin from Nick’s Kitchen in Huntington, Indiana.
Girth is a big issue, some cutlets pounded out so wide that the sandwich is literally impossible to hold by its tiny bun. But thinner isn’t always better. A super-thin tenderloin runs the risk of frying dry. Excellence is built upon a fine balance: There should be a vast amount of crisp, crunchy crust, but the ribbon of pork within needs to be thick enough to remain juicy. Too thick, however, and a tenderloin loses its elegance. Traditionally, tenderloins are garnished with mustard and pickle chips, with the option of lettuce and tomato.
The tenderloin originated in Huntington, Indiana, where, in 1904, Nick Frienstein started selling breaded pork cutlets from a street cart. Four years later, he opened a restaurant called Nick’s Kitchen. The method of pork preparation was changed one winter, shortly after Nick moved to the cafe, when his brother Jake suffered such severe frostbite that he lost the fingers off his hands. Jake, whose job it was to bread the slices of pork, found that his stumps made good tools for pounding the meat to make it tender. Since then, all tenderloins are either beaten tender (with a wooden hammer) or run through a mechanical tenderizer (or both). Considering this genesis story, the motto of Nick’s Kitchen, which boasts of tenderloins that are nearly too wide to handle, is ironic: “Bet You Need Both Hands.”
Tenderloin
Frying tenderloins for BPTs (breaded pork tenderloin sandwiches) is like frying chicken. All recipes share common elements, but everyone who does it has a twist, ranging from how the flour coating is seasoned to what the cooked meat ought to be drained on (paper towels? brown paper bags?). This recipe comes from the kitchen of a family friend who grew up on a central Indiana farm in the 1950s and who makes tenderloins today whenever he feels homesick for the sandwiches of childhood.
4 1-inch-thick slices from a boneless, center-cut loin of pork
1 cup flour
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon pepper
2 eggs mixed with ¼ cup milk
Yellow cornmeal
Oil for frying
4 hamburger buns
Lettuce, tomato, mustard, and pickle, as condiments
1. Trim the fat from each slice of pork. Place each one between two pieces of lightly oiled parchment or wax paper. Using a mallet, pound vigorously until the slice is 6–8 inches across.
2. Mix the flour, salt, and pepper. Dip each slice of pork in the egg-milk mixture, then in the seasoned flour. Pat both sides with yellow cornmeal.
3. Heat ½ inch of oil in a skillet to 365°F. Slip in one tenderloin and fry 2–3 minutes. Flip and fry until golden brown. Drain on a paper towel. Continue until all tenderloins are done.
4. Serve on buns, with condiments of choice.
4 SANDWICHES