Sunday, March 7, 2010

Salt and Pepper Pork Chops




From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...Like many small families we eat a lot of chicken and pork. They make it possible for us to have meals that can be eaten in one sitting without having to deal with leftovers. For years after the children were on their own, I'd use pork tenderloin because it was fast to make and always tender. We love pork chops, but cooking them properly and serving them before they become shoe leather isn't always easy. More often than not, they need to be brined to keep them moist and tender as they cook. While doing some reading in preparation for our, now completed, trip to China, I came across a recipe from Taiwan that used thin cut pork chops. I thought the recipe was worth a try and we've been delighted with the results ever since. If you like, a reduced sodium soy sauce or tamari can be used to marinate the chops. The chops should be no thicker than 3/8 of an inch. If yours are more than that, beat them to submission. While the marinade can be made in less than 5 minutes, the chops should laze in it for at least an hour before they're are cooked. Total cooking time is less than 5 minutes and, be forewarned, the chops will toughen if they are overcooked. I serve these right from the pan with scallion rice and a bean sprout salad. I know you're going to love these. Here's the recipe.

Salt and Pepper Pork Chops
...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite with a lot of help from Wei-Chuan Cooking School Taiwan

Ingredients:
3 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 teaspoon fresh cracked pepper
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1-1/4 pounds boneless thin-cut pork loin chops
2 tablespoons vegetable oil

Directions:
1) Combine soy sauce, cornstarch, pepper, sugar and salt in bottom of 9 x 13 x 2-inch baking pan. Stir with a fork until all ingredients are combined and marinade is smooth. Add chops, turning to coat both sides. Cover dish with plastic wrap. Refrigerate, turning occasionally, for 1 to 24 hours.
2) Heat oil in a large frying pan set over medium high heat. Add pork, working in batches if necessary. Cook 1 to 2 minutes per side, until golden brown and cooked through. Transfer to serving plate or serve from pan. Yield: 4 servings.

You might also enjoy these recipes:

Louie's Chinese Porcupines - One Perfect Bite
Braised Pork Chops with Homemade Curry and Chutney Sauce - One Perfect Bite
Pork Indochine and Halong Bay - One Perfect Bite

51 comments :

The Muse said...

I'm not sure where in china you will be going...but I do hope you have as much fun as we had when we took our oriental tour vacation.

And of course a safe trip :)

The chops look scrumptious!...One more reason to yearn to have a warm day...!

Mary Bergfeld said...

Muse, we loved China, earthquake and all. We are still trying to get to Tibet. Each time we've planned it there have been travel advisories for Westerners and despite our pleas it was a no go.

Ana Powell said...

Absolutely amazing and delicious dish x

Holly said...

This seems like the perfect dish for our family!

Bob said...

I love the sound of these, so simple but awesome.

♥ Kathy said...

I bet they're great with the soy sauce!

Allie and Pattie said...

This is fascinating to me, Mary. Thin chops are always more budget friendly but do tend to be tougher. I will definitely try these
xoxo Pattie

Joie de vivre said...

What gorgeous color! And with only an hour of marinating, I don't need to have a lot of forethought to do these!

Debbi Does Dinner Healthy said...

I have a bad habit of overcooking my pork chops. I think that I like to make absolute sure they are cooked through and end up making them overdone and tough. Your picture looks delicious and I'll have to take your advice and beat them into submission when they are too thick. It might be therapeutic. :-)

Kathleen said...

These are some gorgeous pork chops!

Claudia said...

I also overcook pork chops - in my diligence to make sure they are properly cooked. I like the idea of marinating and I love the flavors.

Rico said...

Perfect bite as your site is called and I say a perfect pork yum yum..so succulent and delicious..well done xxx

Inspired by eRecipeCards said...

Mary, that's a beauty... Love these, and the pork chops here are maybe thinner than those, so will be giving these a shot

Jersey Girl Cooks said...

I love Asian marinade on chops. We had pork tenderloin for dinner.

Mary | Deep South Dish said...

They look wonderful!

Selba said...

Yummm... what a yummy pork chops!

D said...

Mary, the chops look delicious! and we will definitely try these.

I had to laugh because when we were growing up everything was fried and it was fried well done. How else can one cook on a coal stove. lol

I hope the shoulder is doing well.

Kim said...

These look gorgeous Mary. My husband adores pork chops and anything with the flavor of soy sauce. I am bookmarking this to make for him. Thanks.

T.W. Barritt at Culinary Types said...

The chops look glossy and beautiful. Sometimes the simplest ingredients are the best.

Tina said...

I also overcook chops....and I thought I was the only one!

China sounds amazing...look forward to hearing about more :-)

sophia said...

I've eaten this before! My mom learned from a Taiwanese friend. But it wasn't with pork chops...it was with some kind of other meat I totally forgot. Hee hee.

Anna said...

Oh! Mary, that looks delicious, love the asian flavors. :-)

Zurin said...

that looks beautiful and very filling. Im sure you had a wonderful lunch/dinner! ^^

Tuty @Scentofspice.com said...

The pork chops looks simple enough to make for a busy day. Thank you for sharing, Mary.

KathyB. said...

I am going to have to try these. I have discovered I prefer to eat pretty much only pork and chicken anymore, but am guilty of overcooking pork way too often. I love, love, love to eat pork cooked or barbecued just right. Thank-you.

Cathy said...

These chops looks so moist and delicious. I'm always on the lookout for recipes that can be prepared for one. This is perfect, Mary. Thanks.

Michelle | Bleeding Espresso said...

Simple and wonderful! YUM!

Mila said...

I use a lot of chicken and pork as well Mary...These look fabulous...sometimes the simplicity of ingredients can really surprise you.

MaryMoh said...

These pork chops look irresistibly good. Love the colour.

MaryMoh said...

These pork chops look irresistibly good. Love the colour.

Sharon said...

We are also big on chicken and pork it's just me and my hubby so that's always the easy thing. These look great! Thanks for stopping by my blog!!

My Little Space said...

This is so yummy! My mom used to make this when I'm back home.

The Diva on a Diet said...

I'm just dying to try these pork chops. They look soooo good!

Here's hoping you'll settle on a destination soon. Rolling the dice to decide is an amusing proposition! :)

Diana's Cocina said...

This pork dish looks delicious.

Katy ~ said...

So perfectly prepared; I should make greater use of pork for weeknight meals. Thank you so much for sharing your family favorite so that I can make it a favorite here as well.

Unknown said...

Mary, these were wonderful! My picky 6 yo devoured them! I featured them on my blog this week:

http://mealplanningmama-weeklymealplans.blogspot.com/2010/04/starving.html

Cindy said...

I got your recipe off Pinterest and made these today. My family is raving over the taste. They absolutely love love love, the marinade is the best ever ! They all want your recipe. Cindy, from New Orleans.

The Coopers said...

Made these and loved them! Making them again for the second time, thanks for the great recipe!!

Linda said...

I tried the recipe last night, it tasted ok, but it would've been better if I knew what I was doing. For some reason my coating/marinate was mostly stuck to the bottom of the pan, any idea why?

Mary Bergfeld said...

Linda, I'm sorry you had trouble with the recipe. The only thing I can think of that might cause the problem was that your oil was not hot enough or you had too many chops in the pan. I've never encountered the problem and that is the only variable that could occur from one kitchen to another. I hope you have better luck next time. Blessings...Mary

Mrs. Gamgee said...

I found your recipe a couple of months ago on Pinterest, and it's become a regular in our rotation. I usually add a little bit (1-2 tsp) of sesame oil to the marinade. Love this one! Thanks for sharing!

Erica said...

What if I dont have cornstarch? What can I substitute? Would love to make these tonight.

Mary Bergfeld said...

Erica, you can use arrowroot or flour.

Anonymous said...

Oh, so good! I had to cook them a bit longer than suggested ~4min/side, but maybe they were thicker than 3/8" My husband doesn't like pork chops much, but he loved these. Thank you for this recipe!

Sondra said...

I was looking for something different and found your recipe. My husband doesn't like soy sauce so I started thinking of different things I could try. I had some fresh pesto I had made for Christmas and I mixed 1/2 cup of it with 1/4 cup Italian dressing and 3-4 shakes of Worcestershire sauce and then marinaded them for the afternoon. I browned them off and then finished them off in the oven until the proper temperature. I am so inspired by the recipes I find I just wanted to share my version with you. Hope you try it

Anonymous said...

I cut up part of a pork loin into bite size strips as an appetizer and marinated overnight. This was a big hit! Absolutely delicious.

Click said...

This was beyond AWESOME!! I had almost given up hope of making a moist pork chop and you have absolutely changed that for me. Thank you for sharing such a FAB recipe!

Unknown said...

I tried this tonight. I think next time I will cut out the salt, I thought the soy sauce and salt together was unnecessarily salty. Though I liked the rest of the flavor a lot so I will probably try this again. I love super simple recipes like this that actually have flavor!

brokeintrovert said...

I forgot about these chops. My husband loves pork chops and I know he will love these as well. I did make these before but I have forgotten the taste because it was a few years back.

sillyitiliangrl said...

I hate pork chops... but LOVED these! I will for sure be making them again!

Brenda Boyd said...

I use this for boneless thin pork chops from Aldi almost every week. Great flavor. Easy-dinner night.

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