Glazed Pork Chops

Glazed Pork Chops

Ever since the Great Lisle Flood of 2013, I've been cooking for a crowd every night. It has settled down a little lately, mostly just my new housemates and the occasional friend or two. Now I find myself trying to come up with menu ideas and today, pork chops came to mind.

Do you like pork chops? Many people I talk to don’t care for them. To them, pork chops are dry, tough and kinda bland. Often, when people eat pork chops, they douse them in Heinz 57 sauce to cover up the dry, chewy texture. They chew carefully so they don’t break a tooth. Is this what you think of, when you think of pork chops? If it is, I feel sorry for you.

Now, it’s time to change that perception. These chops are juicy, sweet, tangy and are bursting with flavor. You won’t need any steak sauce with these chops.

3 tbs. butter
3 tbs. brown sugar
3 tbs. molasses
1/4 cup Dijon mustard 

2 tbs. soy sauce
2 tbs. olive oil
1 tbs. tabasco
4 pork chops, at least an inch thick, the thicker the better

3 shallots - sliced thin

Cajun seasoning

Onion powder
white pepper
1/4 cup white wine 1/4 additional olive oil

Preparation

In a small sauce pan, melt the butter. Add the brown sugar and molasses and stir as it heats until melted. Stir in the mustard, soy sauce, tabasco and the 2 tbs. of olive oil. Cook only until everything is bubbling and well mixed, then remove from heat.

Pick out an oven proof skillet (that means no plastic handles, this will go under the broiler). You want the skillet to be just big enough to hold the chops in a single layer, but not much bigger. Season the chops with onion powder, cajun seasoning and white pepper. Add the 1/4 cup of olive to the skillet and sear the chops on both sides - about 2 minutes per side. When you turn the chops over, add the sliced shallots.

When the chops are seared, add the white wine. Bring the wine to a boil then add the brown sugar mixture. When the mixture starts to simmer, turn the chops over.

Place the skillet under the broiler. When the chops start to nicely brown, turn them over and continue to broil. When this side is nicely browned, turn them over and broil 1 minute. Turn the chops over again and broil for an additional minute. What you want is for the chops to be just past medium rare. Don’t over cook them.

Serving

These chops go great with wild rice, green beans sautéed with butter and almonds, fresh bread, a crisp tossed salad and a light bodied Pinot Noir or a good hoppy beer like Anchor Steam.