Feeding an Army

I liked the first Rachel Ray dish so much that I decided to try another. The recipe says that the prep time is 15 minutes and the cook time is 20 minutes, but somehow I ended up in the kitchen for an hour and a half. It was worth it though.

Spicy Stir-Fried Pork Tenderloin with Sweet Potatoes and Broccoli

1/4 cup vegetable oil
2 1/2 tablespoons soy sauce
6 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 1/4 teaspoons Chinese five-spice powder
12 to 16 dried Thai bird chiles (or 1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes)
3 medium pork tenderloins (about 2 1/2 lbs. total), sliced crosswise 1/4 inch thick
1 large bunch broccoli (about 1 1/4 lbs.) - cut into florets, stems peeled and sliced 1/4 in. thick
1 1/2 lbs. sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into bite-size pieces
1 cup canned chicken broth
1 cup water
2 tablespoons cornstarch
4 cups, steamed jasmine or brown basmati rice

1. In a large resealable plastic bag, combine the oil, soy sauce, garlic, onion and five-spice powder. Lightly crush the chiles with the side of a large knife and add to the bag. Close the bag; shake to mix. Add the pork to the bag of spices and mix well; squeeze out the air and seal the bag. Chill the pork for at least 2 hours and up to overnight.
2. Fill 2 medium saucepans halfway with water and bring each to a boil. Add the broccoli to one pot and cook for 3 minutes; drain in a colander and rinse with cold water until cool. Cook the sweet potatoes in the other pot, simmering until barely fork-tender, about 5 minutes; drain and let cool.
3. Preheat a large nonstick skillet or a wok over high heat. If using the skillet, add half of the pork and its marinade (if using wok, add all of the meat at once) and stir-fry until the pork is no longer pink (about 4 minutes per batch). Transfer to a bowl and cook the remaining pork.
4. In a bowl, stir together the broth, water and cornstarch until smooth. Add the broth to a large skillet and cook over medium heat, stirring, until thickened and no longer cloudy, about 2 minutes. Add the reserved vegetables to the pan and cook, stirring often, until heated through. Add the pork and any juices to the pan and stir until heated through, about 2 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper and serve with steamed rice.

My Notes: I used lite soy sauce to reduce the amount of sodium in the dish, minced garlic from a jar, and cayenne pepper instead of crushed red pepper flakes. I decided to use jasmine rice and it was a perfect match for the spicy pork stir fry. Most "spicy" dishes aren't quite as spicy as we like it so we topped ours off with some scorching chili paste. This dish was very tasty and one that we will have again. I didn't realize until afterwards that I had cooked a meal for 8 people so next time I will definitely cut this recipe at least in half.