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badseed1980I've been so lax about posting in LJ lately. Sorry. Tonight's the first night of a long weekend, and I got out of work a little early tonight, so I had time to make something nice for dinner. From a list of options I gave him, my husband picked pork chops. I wanted to do something fruity with them, and thought of and dismissed both pineapple salsa and a watermelon side salad, before deciding on peach chutney.
I was able to find two nice ripe peaches at the grocery store, happily. I had everything else I needed for this dish at home, including some cilantro for a garnish. Around 5:15 or so, I took the pork chops out of the package, salted them well on both sides, and let them sit on a plate in the fridge. Around 6:15 or so, I started the chutney. I didn't bother peeling the peaches (I was lazy), though you certainly can if you like. I cut them in a large dice, and put them in a stainless steel saucepan with brown sugar, cider vinegar, raisins, whole cardamom and coriander seeds, and some ground cinnamon, cloves, and ginger. I started it on medium heat, but when it started to cook down a bit, I turned it down to low to avoid burning. When it was nice and thick and chutney-ish, I took it off the heat.
I took the pork chops out of the fridge after they had sat for about an hour and a half. By this time, you could see why I had salted them so far in advance. See, when you salt meat well in advance of cooking, that salt will first draw liquid out of the meat. Watch, and you'll see it pooled on top and on the plate. "But," you say, "doesn't that dry the meat out?" Well, sure, if you cook it with all that moisture still on the outside. BUT...if you let it continue past that stage, say at least 45 minutes to overnight, you will see that liquid disappear. Where does it go? Right back into the meat, believe it or not. This ensures three things: first, that the meat is nice and juicy with no loss of moisture; second, that the salt permeates and flavors the inside of the meat; and third, that the meat is tender.
I heated a cast iron skillet over high heat, with canola oil in it. When it was smoking, I patted the surface of the chops with a paper towel to remove any remaining moisture (there was very little left on the surface), and popped them into the skillet. The reason you want to make sure the surface of a piece of meat is dry before pan-searing it is that if there's moisture there, the meat won't brown: it'll steam, and turn an unappetizing grey. Blah. No one likes that. I cooked the meat on both sides so that the faces of the chop were nice and brown, and the meat was at about 135 degrees (I prefer my pork a nice medium). I let them rest for a while, and served them with the chutney on top. The pork was perfectly cooked: just a hint of rosiness in the middle, juicy, tender, and flavorful. The chutney was the perfect accompaniment. For sides, I served baked sweet potatoes and salad dressed with balsamic vinaigrette. It was a great start to the long weekend.
I was able to find two nice ripe peaches at the grocery store, happily. I had everything else I needed for this dish at home, including some cilantro for a garnish. Around 5:15 or so, I took the pork chops out of the package, salted them well on both sides, and let them sit on a plate in the fridge. Around 6:15 or so, I started the chutney. I didn't bother peeling the peaches (I was lazy), though you certainly can if you like. I cut them in a large dice, and put them in a stainless steel saucepan with brown sugar, cider vinegar, raisins, whole cardamom and coriander seeds, and some ground cinnamon, cloves, and ginger. I started it on medium heat, but when it started to cook down a bit, I turned it down to low to avoid burning. When it was nice and thick and chutney-ish, I took it off the heat.
I took the pork chops out of the fridge after they had sat for about an hour and a half. By this time, you could see why I had salted them so far in advance. See, when you salt meat well in advance of cooking, that salt will first draw liquid out of the meat. Watch, and you'll see it pooled on top and on the plate. "But," you say, "doesn't that dry the meat out?" Well, sure, if you cook it with all that moisture still on the outside. BUT...if you let it continue past that stage, say at least 45 minutes to overnight, you will see that liquid disappear. Where does it go? Right back into the meat, believe it or not. This ensures three things: first, that the meat is nice and juicy with no loss of moisture; second, that the salt permeates and flavors the inside of the meat; and third, that the meat is tender.
I heated a cast iron skillet over high heat, with canola oil in it. When it was smoking, I patted the surface of the chops with a paper towel to remove any remaining moisture (there was very little left on the surface), and popped them into the skillet. The reason you want to make sure the surface of a piece of meat is dry before pan-searing it is that if there's moisture there, the meat won't brown: it'll steam, and turn an unappetizing grey. Blah. No one likes that. I cooked the meat on both sides so that the faces of the chop were nice and brown, and the meat was at about 135 degrees (I prefer my pork a nice medium). I let them rest for a while, and served them with the chutney on top. The pork was perfectly cooked: just a hint of rosiness in the middle, juicy, tender, and flavorful. The chutney was the perfect accompaniment. For sides, I served baked sweet potatoes and salad dressed with balsamic vinaigrette. It was a great start to the long weekend.
