Sweet chops ya' got there.

I was so glad to get back into my kitchen tonight. I had one of those crazy days where you're not sure if you had gone to work, or been in a prize-fight.
I picked up a three-pack of nice and fresh pork loin chops from the butcher, and we chatted it up a bit. I got some nice nuggets of knowledge from him on how to cook the center-cut loin chop. To sum it up, the gist was that they should either be "hot and fast" on a BBQ, or "low and slow", in the oven.

Not wanting to try and eat three 1" thick loin chops by myself for fear of literally becoming what I was eating, I went for just one. If I could get just one chop to anywhere near edible tonight, I'd be happy.

A brine in some apple cider vinegar, brown sugar, salt, black pepper, mustard and allspice would help keep the meat moist. I've really developed a keen respect for the power even just an hour soak in a brine does for a cut of meat, especially the leaner ones.

Once the brine was done, I didn't want to treat the chop like another steak. I wanted some flavor, but not a side dish, since tonight I was more concerned with applying the proper technique than how many accompaniments I could whip up.

Some mushrooms, citrus zest (tangerine), minced shallot, black pepper, salt and chopped fresh sage made a nice gremolata-esque basic stuffing. I left garlic out of this one, since I wanted some flavor, but not an overly pungent aroma.

Searing the pork chops was difficult to do without constantly checking the undersides for over-browning. It had barely been a day since I turned what could have been a perfectly serviceable chop into a construction brick. But I managed to just let the pan do its thing and I did get a nice sear this time. Things were starting to look up!

To go with a very safe method, I chose to bake the chop in a pouch rather than open in the oven. I Macguyver'd a cooking pouch out of some flimsy aluminum foil and tossed in a little white wine for some extra acidity and moisture for the meat, and tossed the neat little pouch into my 350 degree oven.

35 minutes later, the package was ready for serving. I know this because it spent 30 minutes in the oven, had a 5 minute rest, and my brand new oven thermometer was showing a temperature of 157 degrees. Not quite the government-recommended temperature of 160, but I like disobeying government, it makes me feel all American founding-fatherish.

While the chop was resting, I took the pan juices that had gathered in the pouch and combined it with some tangerine juice, honey, pepper and some allspice. A few minutes over high heat, and it reduces into a semi-viscous sauce. A quick pat of butter gave a nice sheen to the sauce, and then it was plating time!

The only real criticism I can give for this dish was that the meat did dry out just a very little bit. But I have an idea for getting around that next time, which I will share with you, well..next time I suppose. Beyond the mild dryness, the meat had a wonderful flavor of fresh citrus and sage and shallot. The mushrooms got a little lost in the flavor department, but their texture added a nice depth to the overall dish.
I was pleasantly surprised at how the tangerine zest in the savory stuffing melded with the sweetness of the tangerine juice and honey pan sauce. There was definitely some culinary yin-yang happening with that combination. Savory and sweet at the same time, united by the curious addition of an ever so slightly "off the beaten path" citrus choice and the fresh sage.

I may or may not do pork chops again tomorrow. But based on how this dish came out, I am well on my way to a full recovery of the pork-chop blues.

For now, that's 1 more recipe down, 462 to go.