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Prosciutto & Sage
Pork Medallions

with Creamy Parmesan Polenta & Garlic Roasted Green Beans

Prosciutto-wrapped pork with fresh sage, a buttery white-wine pan sauce, creamy Parmesan polenta and roasted garlic green beans. Cozy enough for a snowy night. Impressive enough that she doesn't need to know how easy you made it look.

Cozy winter date-night dinner with Prosciutto and Sage Pork Medallions, creamy Parmesan polenta and garlic roasted green beans
♨
SERVES
2
◷
PREP
20 MIN
♨
COOK
30 MIN
★
DIFFICULTY
★★☆☆☆

WHAT YOU’RE MAKING

Prosciutto & Sage
Pork Medallions
Creamy Parmesan
Polenta
Garlic Roasted
Green Beans

THE DRINKS

Gold Rush

ONE DRINK
2 oz bourbon
¾ oz fresh lemon juice
¾ oz honey syrup

TWO DRINKS
4 oz bourbon
1½ oz fresh lemon juice
1½ oz honey syrup
Honey syrup: Mix equal parts honey and warm water until smooth.

Add everything to a shaker with ice. Shake well, then strain over fresh ice in a rocks glass.
WINE WITH DINNER — LA CREMA PINOT NOIR Start the night with the Gold Rush, then pour the Pinot Noir with dinner. It’s light enough for the pork, while the fruit and earthiness play nicely with the prosciutto, sage and Parmesan.

S&S Move: Cocktail while you get settled. Wine when the plates hit the table.

WHAT YOU NEED

Prosciutto & Sage Pork Medallions

  • 1 pork tenderloin, about 1–1¼ lb
  • 6 thin slices prosciutto
  • 1 small package fresh sage
  • 2 cloves garlic
  • ½ cup dry white wine
  • ½ cup chicken broth
  • 2 Tbsp unsalted butter
  • 1 Tbsp olive oil
  • ½ lemon
  • Kosher salt
  • Black pepper
Secret Weapon — Fresh Sage
Use fresh sage here, not dried. Tucking a leaf between the pork and prosciutto gives every medallion that savory, woodsy flavor without turning dinner into an herb garden.

Creamy Parmesan Polenta

  • ½ cup quick-cooking polenta
  • 1 cup chicken broth
  • 1 cup whole milk
  • ½ cup freshly grated Parmesan
  • 2 Tbsp unsalted butter
  • Kosher salt
  • Black pepper

Garlic Roasted Green Beans

  • 8 oz fresh green beans
  • 1 clove garlic
  • 1 Tbsp olive oil
  • ½ lemon
  • Kosher salt
  • Black pepper

Gear

  • Large skillet
  • Medium saucepan
  • Sheet pan
  • Whisk
  • Tongs
  • Instant-read thermometer
  • Cutting board
  • Chef’s knife
  • Cocktail shaker
  • 2 rocks glasses

BEFORE SHE GETS THERE

  • Get the pork ready. Cut the tenderloin into six thick medallions. Have the prosciutto and fresh sage ready, but wait to wrap the pork until you’re closer to cooking.
  • Handle the boring stuff now. Trim the green beans, mince the garlic, grate the Parmesan and measure the broth, milk and polenta. Future you will be extremely grateful.
  • Make the honey syrup. Equal parts honey and warm water. Stir until smooth and let it cool. Gold Rush problem officially handled.
  • Reset the kitchen. Empty sink. Clean counter. Dishwasher loaded. A pan sauce is a lot more fun when you aren’t cooking inside a crime scene.
  • Go make yourself date-ready. Shower, teeth, clean shirt. Easy on the cologne — she should notice it when she gets close, not when she pulls into the driveway.
  • Set the room. Music on. Overhead lights off. Lamps or candles on. Make the place feel like you planned the night, not just the dinner.
  • Check the bathroom. Quick wipe-down, fresh hand towel and make sure there’s toilet paper. You’ve come too far to lose points here.
Prep handled.
Place handled.
You’re ready.

PLAY BY PLAY

  1. GET THE GREEN BEANS GOING
    Heat the oven to 425°F. Trim 8 oz fresh green beans and toss them with 1 Tbsp olive oil, 1 minced garlic clove, ½ tsp kosher salt and black pepper. Spread them on a sheet pan. Don't put them in yet. Their time is coming.
  2. GET THE PORK READY
    Pat 1 pork tenderloin, about 1–1¼ lb dry and slice it into 6 thick medallions, about 1½ inches each. Season lightly with kosher salt and black pepper. Lay 1 fresh sage leaf against each medallion and wrap each with 1 thin slice prosciutto. Press gently to hold it together. Go easy on the salt. Prosciutto already showed up carrying plenty.
  3. START THE POLENTA
    Bring 1 cup chicken broth and 1 cup whole milk to a gentle simmer. Slowly whisk in ½ cup quick-cooking polenta. Lower the heat and cook according to the package directions, whisking often. Stir in 2 Tbsp unsalted butter and ½ cup freshly grated Parmesan. Add black pepper and taste before adding salt. Turn the heat to its lowest setting and cover.
    S&S SAVE
    Polenta tightening up while you finish dinner? Stir in a splash of milk. It'll loosen right back up.
  4. GREEN BEANS — GO
    Put the beans into the 425°F oven for 12–15 minutes, tossing halfway through. You want them tender with blistered edges—not green mush from Thanksgiving 1997.
  5. SEAR THE PORK
    Heat 1 Tbsp olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the wrapped pork and sear for 2–3 minutes per side, turning carefully so the prosciutto stays wrapped. Once both sides have good color, transfer the pork to a plate. It isn't finished cooking yet. That's intentional.
    YO, DUDE — THE PORK ISN’T DONE YET.
    Good. It’s not supposed to be. You’re giving it color now; it finishes in the sauce. Keep moving.
  6. BUILD THE PAN SAUCE
    Lower the skillet to medium. Add 2 minced garlic cloves and cook for about 30 seconds. Pour in ½ cup dry white wine and scrape the bottom of the skillet. That's not a dirty pan. That's dinner. Let it bubble for 1–2 minutes, then add ½ cup chicken broth and 2 fresh sage leaves. Simmer for 2–3 minutes until slightly reduced.
LEARNING MOMENT — THAT STUFF STUCK TO THE PAN IS GOLD Those browned bits are called fond. Adding wine loosens them from the pan and pulls all that flavor into your sauce. So don't scrub the skillet between steps—you'd literally be washing dinner down the drain.
  1. BRING THE PORK HOME
    Return the pork and any juices from the plate to the skillet. Turn the heat to medium-low and cook for 2–4 minutes, spooning sauce over the pork, until the thickest medallion reaches 145°F. Transfer the pork to a clean plate and rest it for 3 minutes. Turn off the heat and swirl 2 Tbsp cold unsalted butter into the sauce. Add a small squeeze of lemon and taste it. Salty from the prosciutto. Savory from the sage. Little hit of acid from the lemon. That's the sauce. Don't mess with it.
  2. FINISH THE GREEN BEANS
    Pull the beans from the oven and give them a small squeeze of lemon. Taste before adding more salt.
  3. BUILD THE PLATE
    Stir the polenta. If it's gotten thick, loosen it with a splash of milk. Spoon a generous bed of polenta onto each plate. Set 3 pork medallions slightly overlapping on each one. Spoon the white-wine sage pan sauce over the pork and let a little run into the polenta. Add the green beans alongside and wipe the rim. You just wrapped pork in prosciutto, made polenta and built a pan sauce from scratch. You can absolutely wipe the plate.

THE TIMELINE

6:15
Knock out the prep. Trim the beans, mince the garlic, grate the Parmesan and measure the broth, milk, polenta and sauce ingredients.
6:25
Prep the pork. Cut six thick medallions. Get the prosciutto and fresh sage ready.
6:35
Handle the drinks. Make the honey syrup. Juice the lemon and set out the shaker and rocks glasses.
6:40
Get yourself ready. Shower. Teeth. Clean shirt. Dinner prep is handled. Now handle you.
6:55
Final reset. Table ready. Kitchen clean. Music on. Gold Rush setup waiting.
7:00
She's here. Door. Smile. Date. The stove doesn't need you for five minutes.
7:05
Make the Gold Rushes. Shake them, pour them and actually have a drink with her.
7:15
Oven to 425°F. Season the beans and spread them on the sheet pan. Wrap the pork with sage and prosciutto.
7:20
Start the polenta. Broth and milk first, then whisk in the polenta. Finish with butter and Parmesan.
7:25
Beans in. Roast 12–15 minutes. Toss them once halfway through.
7:27
Sear the pork. About 2–3 minutes per side. Color now. Finish later.
7:33
Build the pan sauce. Garlic, white wine, broth and fresh sage. Scrape up the fond.
7:37
Pork back in. Spoon the sauce over it and cook to 145°F.
7:40
Pork rests. Finish the sauce with cold butter and lemon. Pull the beans and loosen the polenta if needed.
7:43
Plate it. Polenta, pork, pan sauce, green beans. Wipe the rims.
7:45
Dinner. Pour the La Crema Pinot Noir. Food hot. Phone away.

★ BONUS POINTS

  • GRATE THE PARMESAN YOURSELF.
    Freshly grated Parmesan disappears into hot polenta. The pre-shredded stuff fights you. Thirty seconds with a grater buys you smoother polenta.
  • MEASURE THE PAN-SAUCE LIQUIDS AHEAD.
    Have the wine and broth sitting beside the stove before the pork hits the skillet. Once that pan is hot, you're cooking—not hunting for a measuring cup.
  • WARM THE DINNER PLATES.
    Give the plates a few minutes in a low oven before serving. Polenta cools fast. A warm plate buys you time without changing a thing on the menu.
  • KEEP A LITTLE MILK BESIDE THE STOVE.
    Polenta thickens as it sits. That's normal. One splash and a good stir brings it right back. No panic. No concrete.

★ THE FINISH

The hard part's over.
  1. Clear the plates. Get dinner out of the way. The skillet can wait.
  2. Pour a little more wine. You've already opened the Pinot Noir. Put it to work.
  3. Leave the kitchen. You made the sauce. You made the polenta. You nailed the pork. Stop hovering over the stove like it owes you money.
  4. Put the phone away. Take the food picture if you want it. Then be where you are.
  5. CALL IT A WIN. You turned pork, prosciutto and a skillet into a dinner that looked like you had a plan all along. Now quit cooking. She's already impressed.

    Good food leads to amazing nights.
THE S&S PHOTO RULE Looks like the picture?
No? Perfect!
Six medallions. Two plates. Zero reason to start rearranging dinner with tweezers. Our pictures are for inspiration—not intimidation. Honest effort, amazing food and the night is young.
Prosciutto and Sage Pork Medallions with creamy Parmesan polenta and garlic roasted green beans