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A Perfect Play on a One Pot Meal – Cook’s Country One-Pan Pork Chop Dinner

02 Apr

One pot meals are the dream of any busy home cook. You love to have a meal that tastes great, gets everything together in one dish and has easy clean up and cooking time. it may not always be as easy as it sounds and I am always on the lookout for different variations on the one pot meal. It is not often you see one involving pork that doesn’t involve a stir fry, so when I saw this recipe listed in the latest issue of Cook’s Country I was intrigued. It roasts the vegetables and the pork chops together, not something you often see because pork chops, even really think ones, do not take the same amount of time to roast as most of your vegetables do. I was wondering just how the chops would get nicely browned without doing them on the stovetop and still have everything roasted together in one pan.

One-Pan Pork Chop Dinner

4 (10-ounce) bone-in center-cut pork chops, 1 to 1 1/4 inches thick, trimmed

1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil

Kosher salt and black pepper

1 teaspoon paprika

1 teaspoon ground coriander

1 pound Yukon Gold potatoes, unpeeled, halved lengthwise and cut crosswise into 1/2-inch thick slices

1 pound carrots, peeled and cut into 3-inch lengths, thick ends quartered lengthwise

1 fennel bulb, stalks discarded, bulb halved, cored and cut into 1/2-inch thick wedges

10 garlic cloves, peeled

2 teaspoons minced fresh rosemary

2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley

1 small shallot, minced

4 teaspoons red wine vinegar

1/8 teaspoon sugar

Adjust an oven rack to the upper-middle position and heat the oven to 450 degrees.Pat the pork chops dry with paper towels and rub each chop with 1 teaspoon of the olive oil. Combine 2 teaspoons of the kosher salt, 1 teaspoon of black pepper, the paprika and the coriander together in a small bowl. Season the pork chops all over with the spice mixture and set the pork chops aside.

Toss the potatoes, carrots, fennel, garlic cloves, rosemary, 1 tablespoon of the olive oil, 1 1/2 teaspoons of kosher salt and 1/4 teaspoon of the black pepper together in a large bowl until the vegetables are well coated. Spread the vegetables in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet. Roast the vegetables until they are just tender, about 25 minutes.

Carefully place the pork chop on top of the vegetables and return the baking sheet to the oven. Roast the pork chops until they register 140 degrees on an instant read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the pork chops and the vegetables are fully tender, about 10 to 15 minutes longer, rotating the baking sheet halfway through the roasting process.

Meanwhile, combine the parsley, shallot, red wine vinegar, sugar, 1/2 teaspoon of kosher salt, 1/4 teaspoon of black pepper and the remaining 1/4 cup of olive oil together in a bowl.Transfer the vegetables and the pork chops to a platter and drizzle with the vinaigrette before serving.

The chops and the vegetables both were nicely browned and had great flavor. the spice run on the chops really helped them to brown nicely and provide just the flavor they needed for the dish and roasting the pork chops on top of the vegetables added some extra flavor to the veggies as well. Since the vegetables were nice and hot when I added the pork they helped to cook the pork nicely as well. The vinaigrette was a nice finish to the dish but I think it tasted great without it as well and we just passed the vinaigrette on the side for those that might want it on their meal. I love roasted carrots and throw in the potatoes, garlic and fennel (I added an onion too to the dish; who doesn’t love roasted onion?)and the flavors were phenomenal. Best of all, of course is that there was only one pan to clean up when dinner was done. It makes for a great weeknight meal in one dish that you can do in under 45 minutes.

That’s all I have for today. Check back next time for another recipe. Until then, enjoy the rest of your day and enjoy your meal!

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Posted by on April 2, 2015 in Cooking, Dinner, One Pot Meals, Pork, Sauce, Spices, Vegetables

 

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A Weeknight, One Pot Meal – Skillet Pork Chops and Rice

22 May

It is hard to resist making a one pot meal when you come across one. Not only does it help you significantly when it comes time to clean up (which is especially important when you are having one of those hectic weeknights) but it also gives you a great chance to really meld some flavors of your protein, starch and vegetables all in one so that everything tastes great. One pot meals work well with anything – beef, chicken, fish, vegetables – but I find they work really well with pork chops. Pork chops on their own need some seasoning and flavor to really make them explode, and when you combine them with a great sauce, some vegetables and a starch you can get a great meal without it having to take a long time to cook. this recipe, from Cook’s Country, is the perfect example of that, making a simple skillet pork chops and rice.

Skillet Pork Chops and Rice

4 tablespoons butter, softened

2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley

2 /4 cups chicken broth

1 cup long-grain white rice

4 (6 to 8-ounce) boneless pork chops, 3/4 to 1-inch thick, trimmed

Salt and pepper

1 onion, chopped fine

1 garlic clove, minced

1/2 teaspoon dried thyme

Combine 2 tablespoons of the butter and the parsley together in a small bowl; reserve. Microwave 1 cup of the chicken broth and the rice in a covered large bowl until the liquid is absorbed, about 6 to 8 minutes.

Meanwhile, pat the pork chops dry with paper towels and season them with salt and pepper. Melt 1 tablespoon of the butter in a large skillet set over medium-high heat. Brown the pork chops, about 3 to 4 minutes per side. Transfer the pork chops to a plate and tent them loosely with aluminum foil. Melt the remaining 1 tablespoon of butter on the now-empty skillet over medium-high heat. Cook the onion until it is softened and browned, about 6 to 8 minutes. Add the garlic and the dried thyme and cook until they are fragrant, about 30 seconds.

Stir in the parcooked rice and the remaining 11/4 cups of chicken broth and bring the mixture to a boil. Return the pork chops and any accumulated juices to the skillet and cook, covered, over medium-low heat until the pork chops register 145 degrees on an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the chop and the rice is tender, about 12 to 15 minutes. Serve the pork with the reserved parsley butter.

It is very simple and gives you juicy and tender pork chops along with great tasting rice. This recipe uses white rice, but I actually made some brown rice, using this method to cook it and taking it out of the oven 45 minutes into cooking, when the brown rice was mostly done, and the adding it to the skillet with the pork chops to finish up the dish. I thought it turned out really well, but you could use whatever type of rice or grain that you really like. Getting the rice started in the microwave is a great way to save yourself some cooking time to make sure everything is done all at once. This is the perfect meal for a weeknight dinner when you want something that tastes great but does not take a long time to put together, prepare and cook.

That’s all I have for today. Check back next time for another recipe. until then, enjoy the rest of your day and enjoy your meal!

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Posted by on May 22, 2014 in Cooking, Dinner, One Pot Meals, Pork, Rice

 

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A Little Break From Thanksgiving For a Pork Chop Casserole

20 Nov

I am taking a little break today from all the holiday recipe ideas I have been making and posting to write about the entrée I made this past weekend for dinner. I had just received the latest issue of Cook’s Country magazine a few days ago and they always have such great recipe ideas in there that I end up using many of them in our daily cooking. This is true of the pork chop casserole I made on Sunday. Pork chops are not something I would normally consider as a great idea for a casserole dish, but this recipe made them perfectly and it tasted amazing.

Pork Chop Casserole

4 slices white sandwich bread, torn into 1-inch pieces

1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, grated

4 tablespoons butter

2 tablespoons chopped fresh sage

Salt and pepper

4 (8 to 10-ounce) bone-in blade-cut pork chops, about 1-inch thick, bones removed, trimmed

1 head green cabbage, cored and sliced 1/2 inch thick

4 carrots, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch pieces

1 onion, halved and sliced thin

4 garlic cloves, minced

1 tablespoon minced fresh thyme

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1/2 cup dry white wine

1/2 cup heavy cream

Adjust an oven rack to the middle position and heat the oven to 300 degrees. Process the white bread, Parmesan cheese, 2 tablespoons of butter, 1 tablespoon of sage, 1/2 teaspoon of salt and 1/2 teaspoon of pepper in a food processor until coarsely ground, about 8 pulses. Set the mixture aside. Pat the pork chops dry with paper towels and season with salt and pepper. Melt the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the pork chops and cook until they are well browned, about 4 minutes per side. Transfer the chops to a cutting board, halve them crosswise, and place them in a 13 by 9-inch baking dish.

Add the cabbage, carrots, onion, 1/2 teaspoon of salt and 1/2 teaspoon of pepper to the now-empty Dutch oven and cook, covered, until the cabbage is wilted, about 7 to 10 minutes. Remove the lid and continue to cook the vegetables until the onion is browned and the moisture from the pan has evaporated, about 5 minutes.

Add the garlic, thyme and the remaining 1 tablespoon of sage and cook until it is fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the flour and cook for 1 minute. Add the wine and the cream, bring the mixture to a boil, and cook until it is thickened, about 1 minute. Pour the cabbage mixture over the pork chops and cover the baking dish with aluminum foil. Bake until the pork chops are tender, about 1 hour.

Remove the foil, increase the oven temperature to 425 degrees, and continue to cook the casserole until the top is browned, about 15 minutes. Top the casserole with the bread crumb mixture and continue to bake the casserole until it is golden brown, about 15 minutes. Let the casserole cool for 15 minutes before serving.

I know it may seem silly to use blade pork chops with the bone and then remove the bone, but there is a reason for it. The blade chops generally have more fat than the other chops you see in the stores, and these most often have the bone in them. More fat not only means more flavorful meat in this case but it is also less likely to dry out while cooking in this method. I loved the flavor the casserole had with the mix of the pork and the cabbage and the bread crumb topping added just the right amount of crunch without there being too much of it. Everyone seemed to really enjoy it and I’ll be making this one again. I served this with the winter squash bowls and some roasted balsamic potatoes to round out the meal.

That’s all I have for today. Check back next time for some more recipes. I have a couple of breads I have tried recently that might be good for Thanksgiving coming up – some french bread and some focaccia rolls. Until next time, enjoy the rest of your day and enjoy your meal!

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Posted by on November 20, 2013 in Cooking, Dinner, One Pot Meals, Pork

 

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An Alton Brown Special – Slow Cooker Pepper Pork Chops

02 Nov

Alton Brown’s recipes are always among my favorites. He seems to take the time to make sure everything is going to be cooked just right so that you get the best taste and flavor out of your dish. This was particularly true of the dinner I made last night that uses his recipe for slow cooker pepper pork chops. Granted, part of the dish is actually made on the stove top before it makes its way over to the slow cooker, but this helps you to get great browning for the pork chops and onions before they go into the slow cooker to get that falling-off-the-bone flavor and texture to them. There is some prep work that needs to go into this one beforehand, which includes brining the pork chops for 24 hours, but it is well worth the effort.

Slow Cooker Pepper Pork Chops

2 cups vegetable broth or water

1/2 cup kosher salt

1/2 cup light brown sugar

2 tablespoons black peppercorns, slightly crushed

1 pound ice

4 (1 to 1 1/2-inch thick) bone-in pork chops

2 teaspoons kosher salt

1/3 cup dried apple slices

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 large onion, julienned

1 1/2 cups chicken broth

1 tablespoon coarsely ground black pepper

1 teaspoon dried thyme

Combine the vegetable broth, 1/2 cup of kosher salt, brown sugar and the crushed peppercorns in a medium saucepan and set it over medium-high heat. Cook just until the salt and sugar have dissolved then remove the mixture from the heat and add the ice to the saucepan. Place the pork chops in a large zip-top plastic bag along with the mixture and seal the bag. Place the bag in a plastic container and refrigerate the pork chops overnight.

Remove the chops from the brine, rinse and pat them dry. Season both sides of the chops with kosher salt and set them aside.

Place the apple slices in the slow cooker. Heat 1 1/2 tablespoons of the olive oil in a large saute pan or skillet over medium-high heat. Saute the pork chops on both sides until they are golden brown, about 5 to 6 minutes per side. Once they are browned, place the pork chops into the slow cooker on top of the apple slices.

Add the remaining 1/2 tablespoon of olive oil to the saute pan followed by the onions ans saute the onions until the begin to brown, about 3 to 4 minutes. Add the chicken broth to the pan to deglaze. Add the black pepper and the dried thyme and stir the mixture to combine. Transfer the entire mixture to the slow cooker, set the slow cooker to high, cover and cook for 1 1/2 hours. Decrease the heat to low and continue cooking for another 4 1/2 hours or until the pork is tender and falling away from the bone. Serve.

The brine really helps to add some great flavor to the pork. If you aren’t a big fan of pepper, you might want to skip this one because the pepper flavor from the brine certainly permeates the pork well. I thought it had fantastic flavor and loved the taste of the pepper with the onions and apples. I served this with some simple white rice and I also made a mashed butternut squash, which was a great side dish for the pork and one that you can easily use as a side dish for your Thanksgiving plans. I’ll be posting the recipe for that dish tomorrow.

That’s all I have for today. Check back next time for more recipes. I am working on a lot of things, including a bunch of dishes that are perfect for Thanksgiving that I will be highlighting throughout the month of November. Michelle’s birthday is at the end of this coming week, so we’ll be doing some Thanksgiving dishes for her birthday since I am not cooking at home this holiday. I’ll also be trying my hand at her birthday cake this year, so we’ll see how that turns out as well. Keep checking to see what is next. Until next time, enjoy the rest of your day and enjoy your meal!

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Posted by on November 2, 2013 in Cooking, Dinner, Pork, Slow Cooker Meals

 

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Oktoberfest Meals, Part 2 – Pork Chops with Cider Glaze

01 Oct

It’s time for the next recipe I tried that was part of Williams-Sonoma and their post about Oktoberfest recipes. Pork is a mainstay when it comes to Oktoberfest and German cooking, and this recipe is a very simple one that makes great use of three great pieces of this type of cooking – pork chops, cabbage and apples. This one is a pork chops with cider glaze recipe that you can prepare and have on the table in under 30 minutes. If you want to take the time to brine your pork chops ahead of time, you could do that overnight and have some really flavorful chops when you are done. I’ll post the brine recipe after this recipe.

Pork Chops with Cider Glaze

4 bone-in, center-cut pork chops, each about 3/4 inch thick

Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 head red cabbage, halved, cored and thinly sliced crosswise

2 1/2 cups apple cider or apple juice

1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar

1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves

Season the pork chops generously with salt and pepper. In a large skillet over medium-high heat, warm the olive oil. Add the pork chops and cook, turning them once, until they are golden brown, about 5 minutes total. Transfer the chops to a plate.

Add the cabbage to the skillet and cook, stirring frequently, until the cabbage is softened, about 3 to 4 minutes.

Increase the heat of the skillet to high, pour the cider and vinegar over the cabbage, and boil until the liquid is reduced to about 1 cup, about 8 to 10 minutes. Stir in the thyme leaves.

Return the pork chops to the skillet and any accumulated juices from the plate and spoon the glaze over the chops. Cover the skillet, reduce the heat to medium-low, and simmer until the pork chops are tender and barely pink inside, about 5 minutes.

Arrange the cabbage and pork chops on a platter, top them with the glaze and serve immediately.

I have to tell you that you really do need a large skillet for this if you are going to make a whole head of cabbage. I only used half of a cabbage and it more than filled the skillet I chose to use. I also added a couple of apples to the cabbage as it was cooking for even more apple flavor to the dish. I served this with just some plain white rice, but it would go well with some noodles or even some German potato salad.

If you want to make some brine for these pork chops, here is a very quick brine recipe you can put together to give some great flavor.

Pork Chop Brine

4 cups apple cider

3 cups water

1/2 cup salt

5 whole peppercorns

2 cinnamon sticks

Combine all the brine ingredients in a large bowl and stir. Immerse the pork chops in the liquid, cover and refrigerate for at least 6 hours or preferably overnight.

Brining really does make the meat more moist and adds great flavor, so if you have the time and are planning ahead, you might want to give it a try. I loved the apple flavor that permeated the chops and the cabbage in this dish and it was very easy to make.

That’s all I have for today. Check back again for more recipes I’ll be trying out. I do have some new choices for a roast beef, a roasted chicken and a whole bunch of other recipes I am planning to try. Until next time, enjoy the rest of your day and enjoy your meal!

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Posted by on October 1, 2013 in Cooking, Dinner, Pork

 

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How to Make the Best Pork Chops – How to Cook – Cook’s Country

07 Dec

How to Make the Best Pork Chops – How to Cook – Cook’s Country.

Pork Chops seem to be a staple in every home. We all make them one way or another, but a lot of people are afraid of cooking them because they fear under-cooking or overcooking them. They can also be very dry just on their own if they aren’t done right and don’t have a little sauce to go with them. The folks at Cook’s Country give you some great techniques here on the best methods to cook pork chops, some recipes and some sauces to go along with them. Check it out and the next time you make pork chops you’ll be much happier with the results!

 
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Posted by on December 7, 2012 in Cooking, Cooking Websites, Dinner, Pork, Sauce

 

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Back in the Swing With Baked Pork Chops

12 Sep

Wow, it’s been a while since I have had the time to put up an actual recipe that I made for dinner! I hope to have some more to play around the blogs again, it’s just been kind of brutal the way life has a way of intruding upon things sometimes. Anyway, I do have quite a backlog of things that I have cooked recently that I hope to get up here on the blog. I am also on a diet now, so that means trying to cut back on frying and fatty things while still trying to make dinners that appeal to all of us. Tonight was a simple baked pork chops recipe from America’s Test Kitchen. I wanted to bake the pork chops instead of sauteing them tonight, and this recipe looked pretty good and better for us than the usual method.

Crunchy Baked Pork Chops

Salt

4 center-cut boneless pork chops

4 slices of white bread, torn into pieces

1 minced shallot

3 medium garlic cloves, minced

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

Pepper

2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

1/2 teaspoon minced fresh thyme leaves

2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley leaves

1/4 cup all-purpose flour plus 6 tablespoons

3 large egg whites

3 tablespoons Dijon mustard

Adjust an oven rack to the middle position and heat the oven to 350 degrees. Dissolve 1/4 cup of salt in 1 quart of water in a medium container or gallon-sized zip-lock bag. Submerge the pork chops, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 30 minutes. Rinse the chops under cold water and dry thoroughly with paper towels.

Pulse the bread in a food processor until coarsely ground. Transfer the crumbs to a rimmed baking sheet and add shallot, garlic, oil, 1/4 teaspoon of salt and 1/4 teaspoon of pepper. Toss until crumbs are evenly coated with the oil. Bake until deep golden brown and dry, about 15 minutes, stirring twice during baking time. (Don’t turn off the oven).

Cool to room temperature. Toss the crumbs with the Parmesan, thyme and parsley.

Place 1/4 cup of flour in a pie plate. In a second pie plate, whisk the egg whites and mustard until combined; add the remaining 6 tablespoons of flour and whisk until almost smooth, with pea-sized lumps remaining.

Increase the oven temperature to 425 degrees. Spray a wire rack with nonstick cooking spray and place in a rimmed baking sheet. Season the pork chops with pepper. Dredge 1 pork chop in the flour; shake off the excess. Using tongs, coat with the egg mixture; let excess drip off. Coat all sides of the pork chop with the bread crumb mixture, pressing gently so the a thick layer of bread crumbs adheres to the chop. Transfer the breaded chop to the wire rack. Repeat with the remaining 3 chops.

Bake until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the center of the chops registers 150 degrees, about 17 to 25 minutes. Let rest on the rack for 5 minutes before serving.

I made some brown rice, using the recipe I linked to from the Our Best Bites blog, and some steamed spinach. The pork chops were great. Nice and moist inside and the coating was really crunchy and stayed adhered to the chops.It was much better than using Shake n’ Bake or even my own coating with an egg wash on the meat. The mixture of the flour, mustard and egg whites really made a big difference.

I have lots of recipes that have been accumulating for a few weeks with the dinners I have made, so I’ll be posting them when I get a chance. Some of them include Coq au Vin in the slow cooker, Alton Brown’s meatloaf recipe, corn and tomato salsa, a roasted corn and tomato soup, mu shu pork and even a recipe from Sean for sausage bread. I hope to start getting some of them up in the next day or two. Until then, enjoy your evening and enjoy your meal!

 

 
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Posted by on September 12, 2012 in Cooking, Dinner, Pork, Rice

 

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My Sous Chef Takes Over For the Night

28 Jun

I had planned on chicken all week for dinners, but I had also taken out some pork chops to make for dinner one night. I thought tonight would be a good night to do that and I thought it would be an even better night to have Sean take over in the kitchen. He is planning on taking a cooking class later on this summer so I figured tonight would be a good night for him to do some of the cooking while I just supervised. He chose this recipe of skillet barbecued pork chops as his first test. You don’t have to do the brining of the pork chops if you don’t have time to do it, but it does help to add to the meal by making the pork chops more moist.

Skillet-Barbecued Pork Chops

1/2 cup salt

4 bone-in rib loin pork chops, 3/4 to 1 inch thick, trimmed of excess fat

4 teaspoons vegetable oil

For the spice rub:

1 tablespoon paprika

1 tablespoon brown sugar

2 teaspoons ground coriander

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon ground black pepper

For the sauce:

1/2 cup ketchup

3 tablespoons light or mild molasses

2 tablespoons grated onion

2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce

2 tablespoons Dijon mustard

1 tablespoon cider vinegar

1 tablespoon brown sugar

1 teaspoon liquid smoke

Dissolve the salt in 2 quarts of cold water in a large bowl or container. Submerge the chops in the brine, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

For the spice rub, combine all the spices in a small bowl. Measure 2 teaspoons of the mixture into a medium bowl and set aside for the sauce. Transfer the remaining spice rub to a large plate. For the sauce, whisk the ingredients in the bowl with the reserved spice mixture until thoroughly combined; set aside.

Remove the chops from the brine, rinse and pat dry with paper towels. Use a sharp knife to cut 2 slits, about 2 inches apart, through the outer layer of fat and silver skin of each chop (don’t cut into the meat of the chops). Coat both sides of the chops with the spice rub, pressing gently so the rub adheres. Shake off the excess rub.

Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat until just smoking. Place the chops in the skillet in a pinwheel pattern, with the ribs pointing toward the center, and cook until browned and charred in spots, 5 to 8 minutes. Flip the chops and continue to cook until the second side is browned and the center of the chops registers 130 degrees on an instant read thermometer, 4 to 8 minutes. Remove the skillet from the heat and transfer the chops to a plate. Lightly brush the top of each chop with 2 teaspoons of the sauce.

Wipe the pan out with paper towels and return it to medium heat. Add the remaining 1 teaspoon of oil and heat until just smoking. Add the chops to the pan, sauce side down, and cook without moving them until the sauce has caramelized and charred in spots, about 1 minute. While cooking, lightly brush the top of each chop with 2 more teaspoons of sauce. Flip the chops and cook until the second side is charred and caramelized and the center of the chops registers 140 to 145 degrees on an instant read thermometer, 1 to 2 minutes.

Transfer the chops back to the plate, cover loosely with foil, and let rest until the center of the chops registers 150 degrees on an instant read thermometer, about 5 minutes. Meanwhile, add the remaining sauce to the pan and cook over medium heat, scraping up any browned bits, until thickened and it measures 2/3 cup, about 3 minutes. Brush each chop with 1 tablespoon of the sauce and serve, passing the remaining sauce separately.

Sean handled most of the prep and the actual cooking pretty well. The only thing I really did was take the chops out of the pan. He also made some oven roasted potatoes, corn on the cob and skillet cornbread to go along with the meal. Again, he did most of the work himself, including the chopping of the potatoes, mixing everything for the sauce, the rub and the cornbread. All I handled was the hot cast iron skillet for the cornbread. I have to say I was quite proud of how well he did with everything. Now if I could just get him to clean his room, all would be wonderful!

That’s it for tonight. It might be back to chicken tomorrow night, or maybe some burgers, i haven’t quite decided yet. We’ll see what I feel like doing. Enjoy the rest of your evening and enjoy your meal!

 
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Posted by on June 28, 2012 in Breads, Cooking, Dinner, Pork, Sauce, Spices

 

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It’s a Pork Chop Thursday!

31 May

This is another quick and easy recipe, perfect for a weeknight dinner when you don’t have a lot of time. it is Pork Chops Agrodolce with a Herbed Bean Salad. If you want to make the whole meal really quick, you can make the bean salad a day ahead, or skip the bean salad all together and go with rice or noodles as a side dish and have a vegetable (I made green beans). This recipe is a nice mix of sweet and sour flavors with the honey and the balsamic vinegar for the glaze for the pork chops. I got the recipe from Williams-Sonoma.

Pork Chops Agrodolce

4 bone-in pork chops, about 1 inch thick

Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 tablespoons honey

1/2 cup balsamic vinegar

1 teaspoon minced fresh thyme

1/2 cup chicken broth

2 tablespoons butter

Herbed bean salad (recipe to follow)

Season the pork chops with salt and pepper. In a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat, warm the olive oil. Add the chops and cook, turning once, until golden brown, 3 to 4 minutes per side. Transfer the chops to a plate.

Reduce the heat to medium. Add the honey, balsamic vinegar and thyme and cook until the liquid is thickened and reduced by half, about 5 minutes. Stir in the broth and bring to a simmer. Return the chops to the pan, cover and cook for 3 to 4 minutes. Uncover and cook, turning the chops occasionally and basting with the sauce, for about 15 minutes more for medium doneness. Transfer the chops to a platter and cover loosely with aluminum foil.

Increase the heat to medium-high and simmer until the sauce is syrupy, about 3 minutes. Remove the skillet from the heat and stir in the butter until incorporated. Season with salt and pepper. Drizzle the sauce over the pork chops and serve immediately with the herbed bean salad.

Herbed Bean Salad

1 1/2 cups cannellini beans, picked over, rinsed and soaked overnight

2 fresh thyme sprigs

1/2 yellow onion, peeled

1 bay leaf

1 shallot, finely diced

1 teaspoon finely chopped fresh oregano

3 tablespoons thinly sliced fresh basil

2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice

1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil

Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Drain the beans and rinse with cold water. Place in a Dutch oven and add the thyme sprigs, onion and bay leaf. Add water to cover the beans by 3 inches. Bring the pot to a boil over medium-high heat, reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer, uncovered, until the beans are tender, 45 to 55 minutes. Discard the bay leaf, thyme sprigs and onion. Drain the beans into a colander and rinse with cold water.

In a large bowl, whisk together the shallot, oregano, basil lemon juice and olive oil, and season with salt and pepper. Add the beans and stir to coat well with the vinaigrette. Adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper.

You could serve the bean salad warm or cold, whichever suits your tastes best. As I said, if you wanted to make this a really quick weeknight meal, you could make the beans the day before or skip them all together and make other sides instead.

For tomorrow’s dinner, Sean really wants to have the Popcorn Shrimp, so I think that is what I am going to make. I’ve never made it at home before, so it should be interesting. Check back tomorrow to find out how it goes. Until then, enjoy your evening and enjoy your meal!

 

 

 
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Posted by on May 31, 2012 in Cooking, Dinner, Pork, Side Dishes

 

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Pop on Over For Some Pork Chops

22 May

This is a pretty easy meal for a weeknight dinner, which we sure could use around here lately. Every day seems kind of crazy, so I have been trying yo pick things for dinner that I can do quickly and easily and still taste good. Tonight’s effort is Smothered Pork Chops. It’s pretty basic and uses nothing out of the ordinary, so it’s good for a weeknight meal that you haven’t had much time to plan for.

Smothered Pork Chops

4 bone-in rib chops

Salt and pepper

2 tablespoons vegetable oil, plus extra if needed

2 onions, halved and sliced thin

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 teaspoon minced fresh thyme, or 1/4 teaspoon dried

2 tablespoons water

3 slices bacon, chopped fine

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1 3/4 cup chicken broth

2 bay leaves

1 tablespoon minced fresh parsley

Pat the chops dry with paper towels, then season with salt and pepper. Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a large nonstick skillet over high heat until just smoking. Brown the chops on both sides, about 6 minutes, then transfer to a large plate.

Add the remaining 1 tablespoon of oil to the skillet and return to medium heat until shimmering. Add the onions and cook, scraping up any browned bits, until lightly browned, about 7 minutes. Stir in the garlic and the thyme and cook until fragrant, about 15 seconds. Stir in the water, scraping up any browned bits, then transfer to a bowl.

Add the bacon to the skillet and return to medium heat until crisp, about 8 minutes. Transfer the bacon to a paper towel-lined plate, leaving the bacon fat in the pan. Whisk the flour into the fat left in the skillet and cook over medium-low heat until golden, about 5 minutes. Whisk in the broth, scraping up any browned bits. Return the chops to the skillet and cover them with the onions. Add the bay leaves, cover, and simmer over low heat until the pork is completely tender, about 30 minutes.

Transfer the chops to a serving platter and tent with foil. Continue to simmer the sauce until thickened, about 5 minutes. Discard the bay leaves, stir in the parsley, and season with salt and pepper to taste. Spoon the sauce over the chops and sprinkle with the crisp bacon before seasoning.

This recipe calls out for mashed potatoes or noodles because of the gravy, but rice would probably work just as well here too. I served it with noodles and green beans on the side. Make sure the chops are nice and browned and not pale and gray; they look much better and taste a lot better.

That’s it for tonight. A quick recipe for a quick meal. Tomorrow I am making chicken, I just haven’t decided on a recipe yet, so check back and see what I come up with. Until next time, enjoy your evening and enjoy your meal!

 

 
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Posted by on May 22, 2012 in Cooking, Dinner, Pork

 

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