Saturday, April 11, 2009

Stuff it! (If it's a pork chop)


My grocer had beautiful thick-cut pork chops -- over an inch thick. They begged to be stuffed.

In the category of "How did THIS happen?" I discovered in my pantry a package of dried morel mushrooms that for some reason I had not used. Obviously an oversight, because they are my very favorite fungus. So I knew I would include them in the stuffing.

2 thick cut pork chops. Mine were 1.99 pounds for 2, including the bones.
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup kosher salt
2 cups warm water
2 cups apple juice (or just more water, I happened to have apple juice)
4 cloves garlic, smushed, peels removed
pepper

For the stuffing:
1/2 medium onion
3-4 morel mushrooms (or any kind, but it won't be as good!)
cracker crumbs (from a handful of crackers, actually the dregs and broken pieces I had save) and bread (I used 1 big slice of a 12-grain bread) You could use all bread, but I wouldn't use all crackers.
1 egg
chicken broth (or water)

For the garnish: The rest of the package of dried mushrooms and some arugula

In a large non-reactive container that has a leakproof lid and is big enough for the chops -- I used a food storage container made from that rigid plastic -- combine the water, sugar, salt, garlic and juice. Put the lid on, making sure it's on tight, and shake, shake, shake. Add the pork chops, put the lid back on and shake a little more. Then stick the whole thing in the fridge for about an hour. This is called brining, and it helps make sure the pork chops won't be dry. Plus, it starts adding flavor.

Rinse the dried mushrooms and put in a glass bowl. Cover with chicken broth. Put that in the fridge, too.

Meanwhile:
Chop the onion fairly finely -- if the pieces are too big, it will be difficult to get them inside the chops.
Saute the onion in a little butter or oil, but only until it just begins to turn color.
Crumble the crackers and bread in a bowl and add the onions.

After the mushrooms have soaked for about half an hour, or until they've plumped up, chop 3-4 of them fairly finely. Add them to the stuffing bowl. Add one egg.

If you haven't used seasoned crackers, as I did, you might need to add some salt and pepper. I didn't.

If the mixture seems too dry, and it probably will, add a little of the broth that the mushrooms were soaking in.

Once the chops have been in the brine about an hour, take them out and dry them on paper towels.

Using a boning knife or thin-bladed utility knife, cut a slit in the center of each chop, starting from the center of the edge opposite the bone. You want to insert the knife until it touches the bone on the other side, but not poke through the meat. Keeping the "entry hole" as small as possible, probably an inch or so, work the knife inside the chop to cut a pocket. I also use my finger to feel along inside to see if I can enlarge the pocket a little.

Cram as much of the stuffing in each chop as will fit. The chop will definitely "pooch out" to let you get in more than you probably thought. Put any extra in an ovenproof dish to bake as an extra treat.


Set the oven for 350. While it is heating, grind some fresh black pepper onto the chops. I would not add salt at this stage because of the brine. Brown the chops in 2T oil or butter in a cast-iron skillet (or other skillet with oven-proof handle), turning once after about 4 minutes. Tip: Use a pair of tongs AND a turner; it also helps to lift one completely out of the pan to give yourself room to turn the other one, then use both utensils to flip and reinsert into the pan. Move the skillet to the oven and cook for 15-20 minutes.

Remove from skillet to let rest.

There should be a couple of tablespoons of fat/drippings in the skillet. Yay. That means gravy. Add an equivalent amount of flour to make a roux, and use the rest of the chicken stock that the morels had been soaking in as all or most of the liquid, and add the morels. I like to leave them whole, but do what you need to do to avoid fights. (If you need more liquid, grab more stock, some milk or even just water.) Do not be tempted to use the brining liquid, though! Way too much salt and sugar.


And, oh, yes, these chops each would easily feed two people, or last for two meals, especially if you made extra stuffing.

If I had happened to have celery on hand, or had thought to grab a couple of sticks from the grocer's "salad bar," I would have used some in the stuffing. That is, by the way, a tip for getting a small amount of an ingredient when you know you won't use up a whole plant/package. Sure, it's more expensive per pound, but you don't end up throwing a bunch of stuff away. And even if you are wary of public salad bars, and I don't blame you, it's not so worrisome when you are going to be cooking the ingredient!

Depending on many variables, including the crackers you used and how salty your chicken broth was and even how long the chops stayed in the brine, it is possible that you might want to add salt at the table. I added just a touch, mostly for the gravy, because I used low sodium chicken broth.

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This is me enjoying a limoncello in Rome on the last night of our trip to Italy. Funny thing is, I don't really like limoncello that much, but thought it would be great in a dessert. And wouldn't you know, The Barefoot Contessa just did a great fruit salad with limoncello. So now I can't. Oh, well.