PORK CHOPS!
By Cynthia Bowan
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This may be hard to believe, but every so often, I get in a rut, culinary-wise.
I just seem to be cooking the same things, over and over. I get tired of cooking fish and chicken, chicken and fish and the occasional roast beef. Perhaps it is the changing of the Seasons, with the colder weather, which always bothers me, that is making me feel this way. Winter is coming, and that means heavier, heartier dishes, but somehow, I would rather look through the current water garden catalog and dream of warm days.
I knew my darling husband was getting a little bit tired of quick and easy meals, when I got up Labor Day morning, and found he'd pulled some packages of pork chops from the freezer. PORK? I haven't cooked pork in a long time. I have been avoiding pork chops, ham, sausage etc., because I have been trying to lose weight, he knew that, and yet - PORK?
Let's not even go down THAT road.
I grudgingly moved the packages around on the sink. Let me have a decent cup of coffee before I have to think. It was time to get out of the rut and be creative. By the second cup of coffee, the little brain cells were moving and even working.
There are so many wonderful recipes for pork around. Open the refrigerator and see what I have that I can use. My vegetable drawers were almost empty. Some tiny grape tomatoes and a bunch of Romaine lettuce in one drawer - nope, that was food for Holly's Iguana, Woody. Oh, scrunched under the Romaine was a bunch of green onions - well those are always good.
The second drawer held half a red bell pepper, some limp parsley and a bag of those tiny snack carrots. How I wished for had some fennel (or as they call it around here in Western PA, anise)! Fresh fennel, white wine and garlic - a magic threesome for any type of pork recipe.
Well, no fennel and since our front tire blew this a.m., no trip to the grocery store. Holidays can be such a problem! I was embarrassed...I mean, I am supposed to be more than a cook, I am supposed to be a GOURMET cook, and my vegetable drawers would earn me minus points on a chef's report card.
My hubby walked in from starting the grill, and when he hears the situation, he casually suggests I make an old favorite - grilled chops with a melted cheese coating. Oh, now I am getting enthused. AND hungry. Back to the refrigerator. ARGH! While we were away in NC at our oldest son's a couple weeks ago, Holly raided the refrigerator. I told her she could do this and take anything perishable.
"Perishable" means the object will go bad in a few days. The word does not mean my favorite grated cheese blend for pasta etc. - Parmesan, Romano and Asiago. She must have made spaghetti for Aaron. (She confessed later...)
Okay...how about grilled chops with a cherry sauce? Hmm...no, I made cherry pie some weeks earlier, and the sour cherries were gone, as was the jar of cherry preserves. I gnawed on my lower lip.
The coals were getting close to being ready, and I had to come up with something. That's when Merrill came up with a brilliant idea. Use grated Cheddar cheese, he said, and make a new cheese topping. He kept going on and on, how about adding bacon? (I'd have to defrost it quickly.) And some oregano? (...just happened to have some growing in my herb window box.) The green onions were my contribution.
I mixed it all up as Merill put the pork on the grill. While he took over that area, I did baked potatoes in the microwave, and cooked some fresh green beans with tarragon. Dinner was marvelous...
I am of the firm conviction that this is how new dishes are created. After all, Napoleon's chef came up with a classic dish when all he had was a scrawny chicken and a few eggs...
Well, I am not saying that those chops were a classic recipe. But they certainly were delicious, and worth trying again, perhaps with another twist.
I was happy about cooking again, but then, I had to get up this morning...a quick trip to the freezer downstairs in the laundry room, and I find City Chicken (pork cubes on wooden skewers), and a boneless pork roast. A quick survey of the freezer and the nearby shelves of canned goods, and I was off and running again...
Tomorrow is grocery shopping day, I thought happily, as I finished this morning's coffee and wrote up a list. Fennel, sour cherries, hmm...
Life can be good, regardless of the season or a quiet house to one's self. It just takes that little spark and the decision to change...to bring creativity back to a decent level.
I hope you will Enjoy! the following, and as always,
CYH - consider yourself hugged!!!
Best Grilled Cheese-crust Chops
(Grilled Lamb or pork chops)
6 chops, about 3/4" thick
1/2 c. grated Romano cheese
4 T. soft butter
1 tsp. minced garlic
1 tsp. oregano
dash pepper
1/2 tsp. salt
Broil chops 5-6 " from medium coals, 6-8 minutes. Turn and broil 4-5 minutes, or to desired doneness. Blend remaining ingredients. Turn chops over, spread butter mixture on top of hot chops, allow to remain on grill until cheese melts, forming a "crust" on top of meat. Serves 6. (Remember, the pork takes longer to cook than the lamb chops.)
Variation:
3/4 c. grated Cheddar cheese
4-5 strips bacon, fried, drained, crumbled
1 1/2 tsp. minced fresh Greek oregano
2 green onions, finely chopped
2/3 stick butter, softened
Mix all ingredients together in small bowl using a wooden spoon. Make sure butter is evenly incorporated throughout. Follow directions as above. (You could also omit the oregano and green onions, and substitute finely chopped green chilies for a Southwestern twist...)
Pork Chops Smothered with Fennel and Garlic
2 tsp. vegetable oil
4 center-cut loin chops, 1" thick
4-8 cloves garlic, peeled and slivered
1 1/4 c. chicken broth
2/3 c. dry white wine
2 fennel bulbs, trimmed, quartered,
cut into very thin slices
2 tsp. cornstarch
salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Preheat oven to 400F. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Pat chops dry and add to skillet. Cook 3-6 minutes on each side, or until deep golden-brown. Discard fat.
Remove skillet from heat (leave pork chops in skillet) and add garlic, Cook 1 minute in the hot skillet. Return skillet to heat and add 1 c. broth, wine and fennel, bring to a boil. Lower heat and simmer, covered, 5 minutes.
Remove the chops to a pie plate or other ovenproof dish and cover lightly with foil. Place in the oven and let them continue cooking 10-15 minutes or until an instant-read thermometer registers 160F when placed near the bone.
Meanwhile, simmer sauce 5 minutes or until reduced slightly. In a small cup or bowl, mix remaining broth (should be cold or at room temperature) with the cornstarch. Add this to the sauce and boil 1 minute or until lightly thickened. Taste, adding salt and pepper as necessary. Serve chops "smothered" with sauce. Serves 4. Good served with rice or mashed potatoes.
>From Around the Southern Table, by Sarah Belk
Autumn Pork Chops
Have your butcher cut a boneless pork loin into 6 oz. slices.
For six slices, you will need 1 c. sour cream, 2 tsp. Bell's Seasoning (poultry seasoning), and approx. 2-3 c. of finely crushed corn flakes.
Mix the seasoning and sour cream well. Dip a slice of meat in, coating both sides. Place on top of corn flakes in a pie plate, scatter some corn flakes on top, and lightly press down. Turn meat over and repeat. Place on a greased baking sheet. Bake at 350F for 35-45 min., turning once.
Judi's Tangy Fruit Pork Chops
4 boneless, center-cut pork chops
1 tsp. vegetable oil
1/2 c. cranberry sauce or favorite fruit jam
1 T. prepared mustard
1 T. vinegar
Brown chops in large nonstick skillet in vegetable oi;. turning to brown well on both sides. Stir in sauce or jam and remaining ingredients. Cover and simmer gently for 10-15 minutes, depending on thickness of chops. Good served with cornbread and a favorite green vegetable. Serves 4.
Judi Leaming is a NJ food columnist; this recipe is from her wonderful newsletter I used to receive.
Crockpot Cherry Pork Chops
6 pork chops, 3/4" thick
1/2 tsp. instant chicken bouillon granules
salt and pepper
1/8 tsp. mace
1 c. cherry pie filling
snipped parsley
2 tsp. lemon juice
Trim fat from chops, brown in large skillet. Season with salt and pepper.
In crockpot, stir together pie filling, lemon juice, bouillon granules and mace. Place chops on top. Cover and cook on low for 4-5 hrs. Place chops on warm serving platter. Pour some of the sauce over top; garnish with parsley. Serve remaining sauce on the side. Serves 6.
Harvest Pork Chops
8 pork chops
1/2 c. apple juice
1/2 c. golden raisins
1 tsp. salt
1/4 c. brown sugar, packed
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
3 lg. in red apples
1/2 c. water
Pork chops should be about 3/4' thick. Cut apple into 6-8 wedges. Brown chops in greased skillet over medium heat. Arrange chops in shallow 2-qt. Baking dish. Pour apple juice over, sprinkle with raisins and salt. Cover and bake at 350F for 45 minutes. Turn chops.
Combine sugar, nutmeg and cinnamon, coat apple slices with this. Arrange apples around chops. Sprinkle apples with remaining sugar mixture, pour water over all. Cover and bake an additional 15 minutes.
By Cynthia Bowan
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Pork Chop Recipes:
Best Grilled Cheese-crust Chops
Pork Chops Smothered with Fennel and Garlic
Autumn Pork Chops | Judi's Tangy Fruit Pork Chops
Crockpot Cherry Pork Chops | Harvest Pork Chops
