Pork with Artichokes and Capers

September. The restaurant: Year 5 on Gallatin Pike approaches. Five years. The number that means: the business survived the startup phase. The number that Rita says is the dividing line between "new restaurant" and "established restaurant." Established. The word that I never thought would describe anything I built. Established means: here to stay. Established means: the cornbread is permanent. The cornbread was always permanent. The establishment just: caught up.

Revenue pacing for 2028: on track for $740,000. Not quite $750,000. Close. Rita says: "We'll hit it with the holiday orders." We'll hit it. The "we" that now includes: Rita, Rochelle, Mona, James, Tamika, DeShawn, Chloe, and the dozens of people who make Sarah's Table possible. The "we" that used to be: me. Just me. In a kitchen. With a skillet. The "we" has: multiplied. The multiplication is: the success. The multiplication is: the table.

Chloe booked her first freelance photography gig. A coffee shop in East Nashville wants her to photograph their menu. Payment: $300. THREE HUNDRED DOLLARS. For photographs. Taken by a sixteen-year-old. The girl who started photographing cornbread on a cutting board is now: a paid professional. The first client who is not her mother. The first money that is not from the family restaurant. The first step into: the world beyond Sarah's Table. The step is: small. The step is: enormous. The step is: the same step I took when I left Waffle House for dental hygiene school. The step that says: I can do more. I deserve more. The more is: out there. The more is: mine.

Jayden's half marathon training is going well. The NFD running group has adopted him — the youngest member, the mascot, the boy who runs beside men who fight fires and the running-beside is: the mentorship. They call him "Rook" (short for rookie). Jayden calls them: "the guys." "The guys and I ran six miles today, Mama." The guys. The casual ownership of male friendship. The casual belonging. The casual: family. The fire station family that Jayden has needed since he was four and that arrived, finally, in the form of men in running shoes who say "keep going" and mean it.

Dinner: chili. September chili. The first of the season. The constant. Jayden ate: four bowls. The half-marathon metabolism is: a furnace that runs on chili and pasta and the dreams of a thirteen-year-old boy who calls firefighters "the guys" and means: the men I belong to. The belonging is: the dinner. The chili is: the communion. Amen.

The chili is Jayden’s — it always will be, and September will always begin with his four bowls and his half-marathon furnace burning through everything I put in front of him. But the week before that first pot of the season, when it was just me and the kitchen and the quiet weight of five years, I made this instead: pork with artichokes and capers, a recipe I’d clipped and never tried, something that felt like it deserved a Tuesday night in an established kitchen. It’s the kind of dish that doesn’t shout — it just says, calmly, that you’ve earned a little elegance.

Prep Time: 15 min | Cook Time: 30 min | Total Time: 45 min | Servings: 4

Ingredients

1 1/2 lbs pork tenderloin, sliced into 1-inch medallions
1 can (14 oz) artichoke hearts, drained and quartered
3 tablespoons capers, drained
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup dry white wine
1/2 cup low-sodium chicken broth
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 lemon, juiced and zested
2 tablespoons fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Instructions

Season the pork. Pat pork medallions dry with paper towels and season both sides evenly with salt and pepper.
Sear the pork. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add medallions in a single layer and sear 3—4 minutes per side until deep golden brown. Transfer to a plate and tent loosely with foil.
Build the base. Reduce heat to medium. Add butter and garlic to the same skillet and cook, stirring, for 1 minute until fragrant. Pour in the white wine and scrape up any browned bits from the bottom of the pan.
Add artichokes and capers. Stir in the chicken broth, artichoke hearts, and capers. Bring to a simmer and cook 5—6 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the sauce reduces by about a third.
Return the pork. Nestle the pork medallions back into the skillet. Cook 3—4 minutes, turning once, until heated through and the internal temperature reads 145°F.
Finish and serve. Remove from heat and stir in lemon juice, lemon zest, and fresh parsley. Taste and adjust seasoning. Serve immediately directly from the skillet.

Nutrition (per serving)

Pork with Artichokes and Capers — The Established Kitchen