by 
Tender pork medallions cooked in a creamy apple sauce with leeks, mushrooms, and spinach - this comforting dish is full of flavour and ready in under 30 mins.
Jump to:
Reasons to Love This Recipe
- Sweet, creamy apple sauce the whole family will enjoy
- Includes the goodness of three different veggies
- Delicious with potatoes, rice or your favourite grain - the sauce soaks in beautifully.
- Quick and easy - ready in under 30 mins.
Ingredient Information (and Alternative Suggestions)
- Pork tenderloin - Lean and quick-cooking.
- Leeks - Substitute with finely sliced onion if needed.
- Mushrooms - Slice or if using button mushrooms can leave whole.
- Apple Juice - Use fresh or no-added-sugar juice for natural sweetness.
- Stock - Use homemade or low-salt chicken or vegetable stock if cooking for baby.
- Dijon mustard - Adds mild tang. Skip for younger kids if preferred.
- Cider vinegar - Balances the sweetness. White wine vinegar also works.
- Spinach - Finely chopped. Can omit.
- Cider vinegar - Balances the sweetness. White wine vinegar also works
- Double cream - Also called thickened cream in Australia or heavy cream (heavy whipping cream) in the US. Adds richness and creaminess.
- Cornflour (cornstarch) - Optional, to thicken the sauce if needed.
Step by Step Instructions (with Images)
- Brown Pork: Heat 1 tbsp oil in a wide skillet over medium-high heat. Brown the pork medallions quickly, just to colour them. Remove and set aside.
- Cook Mushrooms: Add half the butter to the pan, toss in the mushrooms (whole or sliced). Cook until they absorb the butter and oil, then remove.
- Soften Leeks: Add remaining oil and butter, then the sliced leeks. Reduce heat and cook gently for about 5 minutes until soft.
- Make Sauce Base: Sprinkle the flour over the leeks and stir continuously for 2 minutes. Gradually add the apple juice, stock, mustard, and cider vinegar, stirring to combine.
- Simmer: Return the pork and mushrooms to the pan. Cover and simmer for 3-4 minutes. For a thicker sauce, remove a little sauce and mix with cornflour (cornstarch) and stir it back in.
- Finish: Add chopped spinach and cook for 1 minute. Stir together cream and lemon juice, then mix into the sauce.
Serving Suggestions
Delicious served with
- Creamy mashed potatoes to soak up the sauce
- Baby potatoes
- White or brown rice
- Steamed veggies of choice
Storage Instructions
- Refrigerate: Allow to cool and store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
- Freeze: Allow to cool and place in a freezer-safe container for up to 2 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge before reheating.
- Reheating: Reheat gently on the stove or in the microwave until warmed through. The sauce may thicken when chilled-add a splash of water or stock when reheating if needed.
Recipe FAQs
This recipe is suitable for babies once they are developmentally ready for solids, usually around 6 months or older. Pork can be a bit tough for little ones, so don't worry if they don't swallow much at first - chewing still releases good nutrients!
If your baby is puree-fed, try blending the pork with the creamy apple sauce - babies often enjoy the natural sweetness from the apple juice. Use homemade or low-sodium stock to keep salt levels low.
This recipe contains wheat (flour) and dairy (cream), common allergens, so introduce these separately before offering the full dish.
As with all foods, always supervise your baby and ensure they're sitting upright while eating.
For informational purposes only-each baby develops at their own pace. Make informed decisions for your child and consult a professional for personalised advice.
Our family likes a thinner sauce, but based on reader feedback, I've added an option to thicken it. Mixing a little cornflour with some of the pan sauce to make a slurry and stirring it back in will help. Also, adding the liquid slowly after the flour is added with the leeks helps the sauce thicken naturally.
More Family Meals to Try...
Looking for more healthy kid recipes?Sign up for my free recipe newsletter to get new family friendly recipes in your inbox each week! Find me sharing more kid-friendly inspiration on Pinterest and Instagram.
Pork and Creamy Apple Sauce
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoon olive oil (or vegetable oil)
- 500g / 1.1lb Pork tenderlion fillet ,cut into 1cm thick medallions. (Typically one standard pork tenderloin)
- 20g (1.5 tbsp) unsalted butter
- 200g (3 cups) mushrooms ,sliced
- 2 medium leeks ,finely sliced
- 1 tablespoon plain flour
- 180g (¾ cup) fresh apple juice
- 180g (¾ cup) home made / low salt chicken or vegetable stock
- 1 teaspoon dijon mustard
- 2 teaspoon cider vinegar
- 75g (3 cups loosely packed) g spinach ,finely chopped
- 1tsp - 1tbsp cornflour (corn starch) (optional)
- 2 tablespoon double cream (thickened cream / heavy cream)
- 2 teaspoon lemon juice
Instructions
- Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil over a medium high heat in a wide based pan. Brown the pork (just colour them, no need to fully cook them.) Remove from the pan.
- Add half the butter to the pan and then add the mushrooms. Remove the mushrooms once they have absorbed the butter and oil and left your pan dry. (Again, no need to fully cook them)
- Add the remaining oil and butter to the pan and heat, over a medium heat, before adding the leeks. Reduce the heat and let the leeks soften, this takes about 5 mins.
- Meanwhile combine the juice, stock, mustard and vinegar.
- When leeks are soft add the flour and stir continually for 2 mins.
- Begin adding the juice/stock liquid little by little, continually stiring.
- When all liquid has been added reintroduce the pork and mushroom to the pan.
- Cover and simmer for 3-4 mins. If you'd like a thicker sauce, remove a few tablespoons of the sauce, mix with 1 teaspoon to 1 tablespoon cornflour (depending on how thick you like it) to form a slurry, then stir back into the pan and cook for 1-2 more mins.
- Add the spinach and cook until wilted.
- Mix the cream and lemon juice together and stir into the sauce.
Recipe Notes
Nutritional facts
Sophie
I made this recipe and Oh My Gosh, both my 6mo and 6yo LOVED it, and so did we. I actually cooked it in the slow cooker as we were short of time after school, and it was super tender. I just followed the recipe up until you incorporate it all together and instead added it to the slow cooker. 1 - 2 hours high. and finished it off on low until we ate it, added the cream at the end. Yummy!
Amy Whiteford
Hi Sophie,
I’m so glad it was a hit with the whole family—especially across that age gap! Love that you made it work in the slow cooker too, great idea I'll need to try it for busyy nights - thanks so much for sharing your method. Amy
Rae
We found the cider vinegar and mustard very overpowering, and the sauce was too liquid as opposed to creamy. I also think the leek should be cooked less, as it turned soggy by the end.
Amy Whiteford
Thank for your feedback Rae. The leeks are meant to be soft in this dish, but I totally understand that texture preferences can vary—thanks for pointing that out.
Just to double-check, did you use 1 teaspoon of mustard and 2 teaspoons of cider vinegar? That amount shouldn’t be too overpowering, as I find it helps balance the sweetness of the apple juice—but it’s possible your juice wasn’t as sweet, which could definitely affect the flavour.
If you prefer a creamier sauce, you can always add a little extra cream. And for a thicker consistency, a simple trick is to remove a few tablespoons of the sauce, mix it with a tablespoon of cornflour, then stir it back in and heat until thickened. I personally enjoy a thinner sauce (and lots of it!), but of course, everyone has different tastes.
I appreciate you taking the time to share your thoughts—it helps others who might be adjusting the recipe too!
Ashley
Can't wait to make this! I've been looking for more healthy & family friendly meals to make for our 1yr old. He's also been eating meat since 6 months, but we just get stuck doing the same recipes over and over a lot of times... since you add the cream at the end, I think I'm going to sub in greek yogurt instead
Amy
I hope you and your family enjoyed it Ashley 🙂
Stephanie
I love the ingredients in this recipe but I also found that there was much too much liquid and the sauce was watery. I would add more flour next time and half the amount of liquid.
Amy
Hi Stephanie, yes just add a little more flour and that will thicken it up. We don't particularly like thick sauces so this may be a little runnier for some. My kids love the sauce for their rice/potato or whatever we serve this with.
Phoebe
I would love to try it, but can i substitute the Dijon mustard with something else please?
Amy
Hi Phoebe, you can just skip the mustard 🙂
Viviana Delgado
Thanks for the recipe, not sure why but there was too much liquid in the end. Should I look for a special consistency when I am adding slowly the liquid?
Amy
HI Viviana, did the sauce thicken? Did you add the flour?
Aoife Lyons
Big Hit with my 14 Month Old , i of course chopped the mushrooms and pork into toddler bite-sized pieces ,other than that kept true to the receipe, simple to make and very tasty
Amy
Brilliant! So glad it was a hit! My two used to love this dish too. I haven't made it ages, going to make it again this week - thanks for the reminder!!
Frances
My daughter made this delicious recipe Of pork and creamy apple sauce for our Sunday dinner today. (She uses your site often when preparing meals for my granddaughter and the rest of the family). I enjoyed it so much I asked her to send me the link. I have to say I found the site difficult to use trying to find the recipe in amongst the comments which I appreciated and all the many adverts which I didn't. My daughter said she will print the recipe for me!
Amy
Hi Frances, I am sorry you struggled with reading the recipe due to the adverts. Unfortunately the adverts are needed to support the costs of running this blog, I am glad your daughter printed a copy for you and that you can make and enjoy the recipe.
Christine
I made this for our evening meal this evening and it was a big hit. I let it simmer on a low heat for a while on the hob and it still seemed to do well. Thank you!
Amy
Thanks for the feedback Christine, so glad it was a hit ?