Every once in a while, I am lucky enough to find whole pork loins on sale at my local grocery store. It's then that I'm eternally grateful for two things:
- my freezer, and
- my cast iron skillet
Since a whole loin is a fair bit of meat, that freezer means I have the space and time to use it as I see fit and the cast iron skillet means I can use a quick, hot sear to get good texture, flavor, and moisture in my finished dish. With the addition of a simple beer-based glaze, pork loin chops can become some of the juiciest, most flavorful cuts of pork to grace your table. And since loin chops and roasts are notoriously easy to dry out, that's saying a lot!
I like to pair this dish with a good salad. Something involving a lot of flavors always works nicely. I like to favor bold choices like a combination of fruit and tangy cheese or beans and lots of vegetables in a tex-mex style salad. If you're looking for more, roasted potatoes or rice pilaf pair nicely with the chops as well.
Stout-Glazed Pork Chops
- 1 (12 ounce) bottle stout or other dark beer
- ½ cup honey
- ¼ cup brown sugar
- 2 T. ground mustard
- 1 T. cooking fat of your choice
- 1 lb. boneless pork chops (about four)
Mix the beer, honey, brown sugar, and ground mustard in a sauce pan over medium heat. Cook until the liquid is reduced by about half, remove from the heat and cool. Set aside.
Heat the cooking fat of your choice in a heavy-bottomed skillet (cast iron is fantastic for this, but stainless steel or anodized aluminum will also work) over high heat. Add the pork chops to the hot fat and allow to sear for 4-6 minutes, until slightly browned. Using tongs, flip the steak to the other side. Brush liberally with the beer glaze and allow to cook for 3 minutes before flipping once more and brushing with the glaze. Cook one more minute. Remove the chops to serving plates and serve immediately with additional beer glaze, if desired.
before serving.- Yields: 4 servings
- Preparation Time: 30 minutes