Kitchens Are Monkey Business: Rosie Makes Pig Soup.

Wednesday, March 18, 2026

Rosie Makes Pig Soup.

It's cold, so I'm in the mood for soup. Found about a third of a pork tenderloin in the freezer, so we're going with Pig Soup today.

Rosie's Pig Soup

2-3 cups worth cubed pork tenderloin, dusted with flour

1 - 2 TB each peanut oil and butter

1 onion, chopped

1 32-oz. carton beef broth

1 10-oz can chopped tomatoes with chilies

1 14-.5 oz can diced tomatoes

1 tsp thyme

1 TB oregano

1/2 tsp kosher salt

beurre manié, to thicken soup *See Rosie Note below

1 cup cooked black beans

1 cup cooked white rice

1 can baby corn ears

chopped cilantro

*Rosie Note - Beurre manié is French for "kneaded butter." It's simply equal amounts softened butter and flour, worked by hand to form a paste. Start with 2 TB butter and 2 TB flour. Work it to incorporat the flour into the butter, then pull small bits of the paste and drop it into your low simmering soup, stirring to allow the butter to melt and evenly distribute the flour, thickening the soup.

Cut the pork tenderloin into bite-sized cubes of meat.

Give it a light dusting of flour.

In a medium pot, heat about a tablespoon of oil to about 425°. Drop in a tablespoon of butter. When the butter finishes sputtering, drop in the pork cubes, one at a time, not crowding the pot. Give it about 2 minutes on the first side, then turn the cubes and give a minute more on the flip side. Remove from pot. Work the next batch in, browning the cubes and setting aside.

Add the chopped onion to the pot and cook about a minute, stirring. Add in about 2 cups of the beef broth, scraping the goodie bits up from the bottom of the pan. That's where the flavor is.

Add in a can of chopped tomatoes with chilies. I had hot chilies, which I like, but you might want to try the mild if you prefer less heat. Add the meat back to the pot. Sprinkle in the seasonings, cover, and barely simmer over low heat for about an hour.

At this point, I taste-tested and realized those chilies were hotter than I thought. So I added in the rest of the carton of beef broth and the can of plain diced tomatoes, no chilies. Bring back to a boil, reduce to low simmer.

Now, if you want to thicken up your soup, try using the beurre manié. Stir in a bit of the paste and let the flour cook and the soup thicken up. Whisk in more until you get the consistency you like.

The soup is perfectly fine and good to go right now, but I started looking around in my fridge to see what needed to be used up and I found a container of white rice and a container of black beans that were "leftover" from some nachos I'd made the day before. If you've been reading along, you know that I don't do "leftovers." Rosie does "Moreovers."

To wit:

Now, I don’t like the term “leftovers” and I don’t refer to my second- or third- or fourth-time around meals as “leftovers.” I knew I needed another word that was more definitive and positive. First, I thought of the word re-do's. But that implies it wasn't done right the first time around when it certainly was. Then I considered do-overs. But, of course, that, too, has a negative connotation. I've put a lot of thought into this trying to come up with just the right word which describes the process of what I do in the life chain of the produce and viande I prepare and serve and consume. And my word is moreovers. Think about it: You've already produced and served a wonderful, satisfying, convivial repast. So, what's next? MORE is next. When you say "Moreover," you're likely going to top what you previously said or did, put an exclamation point there, and/or put it in bold or italics. So, I don’t have leftovers.

I have MOREOVERS!

Added both the rice and the beans to the soup.

And then I thought, "Wait! Wait! Let's throw in a can of baby corn too!" So I did. You could use a can of corn kernels, but I like the big corn flavor every now and then, not the corn in every spoonful.

Now, for the step-by-steps: