Tinga Tinga

I'm certainly on a Mexican kick at the moment. Between discovering Rick Bayless' fantastic show on PBS and a Mexican market down the road, I have been all over this. Tacos, enchiladas, meats, beans, you name it, I'm into it. And I plan to continue that path. It's the food I truly miss from Arizona, the pure, unadulterated foods of Mexico. I'm not saying that the Midwest does not have some good food, because they do, but there is so much culture and passion behind Mexican food that I just love.

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Pan Seared Pork Chops

I had a blog post written about hollandaise sauce until I made dinner last night. Then things changed. As I have written before, I make pork chops on a frequent basis because of their ease and consistency in the taste category, but I do not usually venture outside of that recipe. However, in this month's Cooks Illustrated, there is a curious recipe about pan seared pork chops that intrigued me. Intrigue turned out to be a great thing, because these chops were better than Lost last night (and that's saying something).

The key with these chops is the salting. I have spoken before on brining meat, and pork is probably the biggest in need of a good salt water soak. But if you try this with a pan seared chop, the meat does not really develop a crust. So instead it was suggested to salt the meat, leave it sitting on a rack for about an hour, baking it shortly, and then finishing the pork in a hot pan which also yields a pan sauce. Too many steps says you? Suck it up, say I. You can make this dish (and sides) pretty easily as most of the steps involve the meat lying prone on a rack or in an oven.

I altered the recipe very little, because frankly there is no need to. Since I am trying to eat butter in moderation at the moment, instead of using 3T of butter in the pan sauce, I used 1T and instead saved a few tablespoons of the chicken broth and mixed them with 1t cornstarch. I am listing this method in the recipe, but if you would rather the butter, scratch the cornstarch and reduce the sauce a bit further before adding the butter.

Pan Seared Pork Chops

4 1 ½ inch thick pork loin chops (bone in or bone out)
Salt
Pepper
1T vegetable oil

Sauce

1 shallot minced (or ¼ cup finely minced onion)
2 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
1 t chopped fresh thyme (or ¼ t dry chopped)
½ cup white wine
¾ cup chicken stock
¼ t white wine or rice wine vinegar
1 T cold butter
1 t cornstarch
Salt
Pepper

Pat chops dry with paper towel. Salt each chop all over with 1 t kosher salt (or ½ t table salt). Place on wire rack over a baking sheet and leave at room temperature for 45 minutes (no less!). Heat oven to 275°F. Season chops with pepper and place in oven to bake, 35-40 minutes or until the middle of the chops reads 120°F on an instant read thermometer. Remove from oven.

Heat 1 T vegetable oil in large skillet over medium high heat until almost smoking. Place 2 chops in pan and sear on each side until browned, about 2 minutes each side. You might have to lift chops once to redistribute oil and prevent burning. Remove chops to plate and repeat with other 2 chops. Reduce pan heat to medium low. Using your tongs (see the picture), sear the chops on their ends until golden brown and the interior of the chops is 140-145°F. Place on plate, cover with foil, and let rest for about 10 minutes while you make the sauce.

Drain off all but 1 t of remaining oil. Return heat to medium. Add shallot and garlic, stirring often until softened, about 1 minute. Reserving 3T chicken stock, add the stock and wine to the pan to deglaze, scraping up any bits on the bottom. Cook until reduced to about ¾ cup remains, abut 5 minutes. Mix corn starch and chicken stock and add to pan. Stir until thickened. If too thin, reduce sauce slightly, and if too thick add a few more tablespoons chicken stock. Turn off heat and add thyme and vinegar. Stir in butter, season with salt and pepper. Serve with chops.

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My Two Timing Pork

I love pork. And I love stir fry. So this dish just makes sense. This remains one of my favorite Asian When I first tried this recipe (courtesy of my girlfriend's, oops wait, she’s a fiancée now!, dad), I had no idea why the pork was cooked twice. Why in the world would you call for cooking pork in water and then stir fry it? Well, after cutting the first step out when I prepared this dish (I guess you can just call it cooked pork then), I understood why. When you sear pork slices at a high temperature, a lot of their liquid is expelled (pork shrinks) and ends up in the stir fry oil, effectively steaming the rest of the dish and making it quite soggy. So your choices are mop up the liquid (and flavor) with a paper towel, or just cook the pork before hand. The latter, I have found, is a much easier option. Simple, actually, as you heat some water over medium high heat until it is slightly simmering, then add your pork cutlets in until they are just barely cooked. Strain and use in your stir fry. Now you can keep the liquid level down, which allows the sauce to do its thing and be awesome. To make the pork cook quickly, I like to slice mine thin (more surface area=quicker cooking).

Twice Cooked Pork

1 pound pork loin or loin chops, trimmed of fat and sliced thin
½ head green cabbage, cut into about 1 inch pieces
5 green onions, cut into 1 inch pieces

2 T peanut oil

1 T minced garlic
1 T minced ginger

¼ C soy sauce
½ C hoisin sauce
1 T chile paste with garlic
¼ c dry sherry
2 T water
1 T sugar

1 T cornstarch dissolved in 2 T water (mix just before using)
1 T sesame oil (optional, even more optional is the hot kind)

Mix together soy, hoisin, chile paste, sherry, water, and sugar, stir to dissolve and set aside. Bring a medium pot of water to a bare simmer, add pork and cook for about 2-3 minutes until loses pink color. Remove, drain and set aside.

Meanwhile, in a large wok over medium heat, add peanut oil. Once heated, add garlic and ginger, cooking for about 1 minute (stir often so they don’t burn). Add the cabbage and stir fry for around 2 minutes (don’t let it get too wilted). Add pork and sauce, cook until sauce boils. Add scallions, mix to combine. Add in cornstarch slurry and mix until sauce thickens. Finish with the sesame oil and serve immediately.

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Pork for everyone

I enjoy a good pork chop. Especially breaded and baked. So much in fact, I make it about once every other week. Pork chops were the first savory food (along with macaroni and cheese) I ever attempted to cook all by myself. I say attempted because they didn't turn out so great (granted, I was 7). However, my troubles have been remedied and I think I've made pork chops over 50 times. I like the center cut chops the best because the bone does nothing except add cooking time. Unlike chicken breasts, pork chops do not need a bone to add flavor (it only helps when braising or grilling). I also like my chops about an inch thick, anything more and they are begging to be stuffed (some other time, I promise). If you do buy the 2 inch thick chops, slicing them in half (like making a layer cake) is a simple solution.

The common method of making pork chops is dipping them in an egg bath, which is usually 1 egg with salt and pepper whisked together, and then another dip in bread crumbs. Place in baking pan and bake for 45 minutes or so until they reach 160 degrees (lets call it 45 minutes), and eat.

This works pretty well, but there are a few glaring errors. First, pork is a different beast than it was when everyone got together to determine cooking temperatures (probably about 100 years ago). The fatty pork of old was prone to many different disease states, which required it to be cooked to 160. Pork is now leaner and resistant to most bugs. The main parasite in pork, trichinella, is eradicated at 145 degrees. Therefore, pork's cooking temperature can be lowered.

The second error is the breading. Plain old bread crumbs are gritty and bland, only suitable for deep frying or meatballs. For years my family has used crushed stuffing. Yes, crushed Pepperidge Farm stuffing is a great breading. It comes in big chunks, has lots of seasonings, and makes for a great crunchy coating.

So far so good. However, a few more problems have reared their ugly heads. After baking, the bottom is soggy and the chops lack an even, crispy exterior. And pork loves to dry out. Pretty much all the pork I cook now is brined, which makes a huge difference. Trust me, its easy, and you should brine any pork that is not going to be barbecued.

I consulted Cooks Magazine, which, if you are not getting this magazine, is totally worth it. They bake their pork on a rack, which prevents the soggy bottom. It also lets the pork cook faster, which prevents drying. So after playing around with the recipe, I have settled on the following:

Breaded Pork Chops

1/4 C salt
4 C water
2 pounds pork chops (probably 4 of them), about an inch thick

Dissolve salt in water. Trim all excess fat from pork, place in zip-top back, add water, and brine for 15-20 minutes. In the meantime, prepare breading and pan.

1/4 C flour + 6 T
3 egg whites
2 T Dijon mustard
1 1/2 C stuffing. slightly crushed

Prepare three pans, one with flour, one with the 1/4 cup flour, one with the egg whites and mustard, and one with the bread crumbs. Add the 6 T flour to the egg whites and whisk until slightly lumpy.
To prepare the baking pan, take cooling rack and lightly coat with non stick spray. Place on top of a baking sheet.

And now, it all comes together. Preheat your oven to 425 degrees. Remove the pork from the brine, rinse with fresh water, dry well and season with pepper (it's already plenty salty). Dredge one chop at a time in flour, shake off excess, dip in egg whites and then in breading. Make sure to press down for the breading to get even coating. Place on rack and repeat with other chops. Bake for about 15 minutes or until they reach 150 degrees internal temperature. Let cool for about 5 minutes and eat.

And there you go. The egg whites prevent sogginess (that was the yolk fat), and the mustard adds some tasty flavor. You can drizzle lemon juice over them if you wish, but I like mine as is.

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