Grilled Pork Tenderloin with Tropical Fruit Salsa

From the garden

• 3 cups ripe tropical fruit (mango, pineapple, or papaya), peeled and cut into small dice · mango, pineapple and papaya are best; guava works seeded and finely chopped; dragon fruit is too mild to lead. No raw plantain.
• ½ small red onion, finely diced
• 1 hot red or green chile, seeded and minced
• ¼ cup fresh mint, leaves thinly sliced
• 2 cloves garlic, grated

From the pantry

• 1½ lb pork tenderloin, silver skin trimmed · usually two small tenderloins
• 2 limes · one for the salsa, one for the pork
• 2 tsp ground cumin
• 2 tsp smoked paprika
• 1 tbsp brown sugar
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1½ cups rice, cooked, for serving (optional)
• salt · to taste
• black pepper

1. Make the salsa first so it has time to sit. Combine the diced fruit, red onion, chile, mint, and the juice of one lime in a bowl with a good pinch of salt. Taste: it should be bright and a little hot, with the fruit doing the talking. Set aside at room temperature while the pork cooks.
2. Stir the cumin, smoked paprika, brown sugar, grated garlic, 1 teaspoon salt, and plenty of black pepper into the olive oil to make a paste. Pat the tenderloins dry and rub the paste all over them. Squeeze the second lime over the top.
3. Heat a grill to medium-high, or a heavy grill pan on the stove. Lay the tenderloins on and leave them alone for 4 minutes before turning; the sugar in the rub should char in spots, not blacken, so move them to a cooler side of the grill if they flare.
4. Turn every 4 minutes to color all sides, about 15–18 minutes total, until a thermometer in the thickest part reads 145°F. Move to a board, tent loosely with foil, and rest 5 minutes; the center will stay faintly pink, which is correct for tenderloin.
5. Slice the pork into half-inch medallions. Spoon a generous heap of salsa over each serving with any juice from the bowl, and pass rice alongside if you like. The salsa is the vegetable, the sauce, and the point, so do not be shy with it.