Pork and Balsamic Strawberry Salad

March 2020. I am 61 years old, retired from the Postal Service, my days now belong to me and the smoker and Rosetta and the slow unfolding of a life without a mailbag. The week arrived the way weeks arrive in Orange Mound — carried by the rhythm of morning coffee and evening porch-sitting and the steady, patient work of being present in a life that doesn\'t require grand gestures to feel meaningful. Father's day as retired man.

Naomi is growing the way all Johnson children grow — fast, loudly, and with opinions that exceed her vocabulary. She is 2 months old and every week brings a new word, a new gesture, a new expression that reminds me of Marcus at that age or Angela's calm or, in certain moments — a tilt of the head, a stubborn set of the jaw — Denise, always Denise, present in the DNA, present in the grandchild who carries the family forward. Charlie and David in Nashville, building their life with the quiet determination that is Charlie's signature and the patient kindness that is David's. They are becoming permanent, the two of them, settling into each other the way smoke settles into wood — slowly, completely, leaving a mark that doesn't wash away.

I smoked a pork shoulder this week — the classic, the king, fourteen hours over hickory, mopped with the vinegar sauce, pulled by hand when the meat surrenders to the touch. The bark was dark and crackled, the smoke ring a quarter-inch deep, and the meat came apart in my fingers with the familiar, miraculous tenderness of something that has been loved patiently for sixteen hours. Served on white bread with coleslaw and the sauce, because the serving is as traditional as the smoking, and tradition doesn't innovate — it deepens.

The week ended on the porch, as most weeks do — Rosetta and me, the evening settling over Orange Mound like a hymn that doesn\'t need words. The smoker cooling in the backyard. The house quiet but full. The life continuing, low and slow, the way Uncle Clyde taught me, the way I am teaching whoever comes next. The fire doesn\'t stop. It never has. It never will.

The shoulder gets the long, patient treatment — fourteen hours, hickory, vinegar mop, the full ceremony — but a life built around the smoker also teaches you that pork doesn’t always need to be an all-day commitment to feel like love. On the lighter days between smoke sessions, when Rosetta and I want something that honors the meat without commanding the whole afternoon, this Pork and Balsamic Strawberry Salad earns its place at the table: quick to pull together, sweet from the berries, bright from the vinegar in a way that reminds you balsamic and a hickory mop aren’t so different in spirit. It’s what I make when the fire has cooled and the week still has a few good meals left in it.

Prep Time: 15 min | Cook Time: 15 min | Total Time: 30 min | Servings: 4

Ingredients

1 lb pork tenderloin, trimmed
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 tablespoon olive oil
8 cups mixed salad greens
1 1/2 cups fresh strawberries, hulled and sliced
1/4 cup thinly sliced red onion
1/3 cup crumbled goat cheese or feta
1/4 cup chopped toasted pecans
Balsamic Dressing:
3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon honey
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

Season the pork. Pat the pork tenderloin dry with paper towels. Combine garlic powder, smoked paprika, salt, and pepper and rub evenly over the entire surface of the tenderloin.
Sear and cook. Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in an oven-safe skillet over medium-high heat. Sear the tenderloin on all sides until a golden crust forms, about 2–3 minutes per side. Transfer to a 400°F oven and roast 12–15 minutes, until the internal temperature reaches 145°F. Remove and let rest 5 minutes before slicing thinly on the bias.
Make the dressing. Whisk together the balsamic vinegar, olive oil, honey, and Dijon mustard in a small bowl until emulsified. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Build the salad. Arrange the mixed greens on a large serving platter or in individual bowls. Top with sliced strawberries, red onion, crumbled cheese, and toasted pecans.
Finish and serve. Lay the sliced pork over the greens, drizzle generously with the balsamic dressing, and serve immediately while the pork is still warm.

Nutrition (per serving)

Pork and Balsamic Strawberry Salad — Low and Slow Taught Me Everything, Even When to Keep It Light