Last night's dinner was a last-minute thing: I was thinking I hadn't had pork chops in a long while. It turned out the market had some nice shishito peppers, and this and that... It all came together okay:
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| Tamara Keel photo |
That "glaze" is just the pan juices. Started with the pork chops seasoned
pretty heavily with chipotle sea salt, alderwood-smoked salt, black
pepper, chili-mango mix and smoked Spanish paprika (bittersweet).
Started on both sides in a little bacon fat (and I should have seared
the edge fat), then just a little Pinot
Grigio poured in and covered. Let it go for a least 15-20 minutes over
medium-low heat. You want it just barely bubbling. Add wine as needed;
you want to keep a little liquid in the bottom of the pan. Turn and give
them another 15+ minutes, maintaining liquid level, and then turn up
the heat. When it gets hot, add the shishito peppers, turning as needed.
You'll be deglazing and adding liquid often. Cook until peppers are
done -- they puff up a little and may even "pop." I used a 10" non-stick saucepan with the clear lid, very handy for this kind of cooking. To serve, the pan juices get poured over the plated chop and peppers, which have added a tiny hint of heat.
Why Pinot Grigio? Chance. Walking toward the checkout, I decided a little wine would help the chops cook. Looking for white wine, I saw the Pinot Grigio and had vague memories of it being flavorful and having a little "edge." After I'd eaten dinner and was cleaning up the dishes, I chanced to look at the wine label: "Delicate floral aroma...overtones of citrus, pear and apple...." So let's make that "lucky chance."
This is actually low-effort cooking: the asparagus has a little olive or sesame oil on it, and is microwaved for 4 minutes plus or minus with some fresh garlic, salt, and a couple of slices of red bell pepper. The neighborhood grocer's sells it made up, ready to cook. The tomatoes are just quartered, sprinkled with "Italian seasoning blend" and allowed to sit for five minutes.
Mmnnnn... Tasty!
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