Wednesday, May 17, 2006
Grilled Pork Chop with Apple and Mustard Sauce
People who live in cities for too long often react in one of two ways: Either they forget that nature exists and live happily ever after or they become gloomy and start believing that we are completely destroying nature with our urb
an sprawls and that it will all end in disaster. Well, I say people. Most of my friends fit in either category. I tend fluctuate between the two, but am definitely more of a doomsday prophet. So it makes me incredibly happy when I come across indications that man is by far less powerful that I make him out to be and that nature continues to survive even in the face of fierce competition. Flowering trees, squirrels playing in the park, even the odd mouse in the underground really make me smile. Imagine how I felt this morning when, on my way to work, I cycled past a beautiful flower that was growing right there by the side of a major road between two lamp posts slowly, but powerfully, pushing aside the stone slabs of the sidewalk and a metal rod someone had dropped on top of it. The sight absolutely made my day.With memories of the beautiful red blossom, I happily faced even the most boring tasks. And I couldn't wait to get home and use
my newfound energy in the kitchen. On the way, I stopped at the butcher's and got a pork chop for Lofty and a chicken breast for myself. Lofty really loves pork, so he was in heaven in Munich and Prague, both of which have a strong tradition of cooking pork. In beef and lamb loving Ireland, however, something is missing. I haven't made a roast leg of pork with crackling in over a year. But tonight I wanted to share my delight and got the closest thing I could get my hands on in a hurry. I, on the other hand, don't like pork, hence the chicken. Lightly fried with buttered fennel (something that Lofty can't stand) and baby potatoes it made the perfect treat for a beautiful day. Lofty's dinner was a bit more complicated. I grilled the pork and served it with buttered cauliflower and baby potatoes and a sweet and savoury mustard-apple-sauce.For the pork chop:I also added a buttered beetroot to the plate, but that was a result of me over-reacting in the face of abundance rather than necessity. I had pre-cooked them for tomorrow night and in my cooking enthusiasm I couldn't resist to serve at least one tonight. Also, this is really too much sauce for one person, so if you are cooking for two, there is no need to adjust the quantities.
1 thick pork chop (go for at least 1 inch/2½ cm to reduce the risk of your chop drying out)
1 tbsp oil
salt and pepper to taste
For the sauce:
15g butter
1 shallot (or ½ onion), finely chopped
1 small garlic clove, finely chopped
½ tart apple (such as granny smith or bramley), cut into 3 to 4 wedges
50ml white wine (or cider if you like you sauce fruity)
50ml chicken or vegetable stock
1 tsp Dijon mustard
½ tomato, finely chopped (Many people skin and de-seed their tomatoes for cooking. Feel free to do so if you want, but I tend to just use the whole fruit)
100ml cream
salt and black pepper to taste
To serve:
boiled baby potatoes
cauliflower sweated in butter (don't boil it, that kills the flavour)
To make the sauce, heat the butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and fry, stirring occasionally, until translucent, about 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic and continue frying for a minute. Add the apple and fry them, turning them only once or twice, until golden brown on both sides. This is a bit of a balancing act. You want to caramelise the apple and release the juices and flavour without burning the onions.
When the apple pieces are cooked on the outside, remove them from the pan and set aside. Pour in the wine and bring to the boil. Then add the chicken stock, mustard and tomato and heat the sauce through again. Purée until smooth. Return to the saucepan and add the cream. Heat the sauce through again, but do not allow it to boil.
To cook the pork chops, preheat a griddle pan or shallow frying pan over medium heat. Brush the pork chops with the oil and season with salt and pepper. Griddle for 4 to 5 minutes on both sides. Half way through the cooking, add the reserved apple wedges and grill them until golden and tender. Serve the chop with the sauce, vegetables and grilled apple.
Christine at 8:22 pm
