Tuesday, May 11, 2010

Orange-glazed Pork Chops

In a burst of culinary creativity (and with the help of my Gooj), I've invented about five new recipes in the last couple weeks. It's been delicious. I hadn't realized how much I had missed spending time in the kitchen! I'll be posting more in the coming weeks, now that my crazy semester is over. whew.

I'm still in Provo, spending Spring Term living in La Casa Española in the FLSR (Foreign Language Student Housing). Living here is a bit like Harry Potter, only with languages instead of magic. And I'm loving being roomies with my Carrieface again.

Each night, our house gets together for dinner. We take turns cooking and helping each other out, and last Wednesday, I was playing assistant chef to my amigo, Casey. He had a recipe for a citrus and pork chop casserole sort of thing...? But we weren't exactly sure how it was all supposed to come together, whether the rice should be cooked, how everything should be layered, etc. All we really knew was that orange juice, shallots, pork chops, chicken broth, and rice were supposed to somehow come together to make dinner. As that seemed rather mysterious, I suggested to Casey that we cook the rice on its own--even rice deserves a bit of independence--and make sauce to pour over the pork chops before baking them. I was completely winging this and cooking for 30, so these measurements are... approximate. And it was my first time ever cooking or even eating pork chops! But it was yummy!

Bon appétit and buena suerte! And, of course, I added a bit of extra spice. And some butter. mmhmm... 


Saucy Oranged Pork Chops (For 6)
That ^ was a typo, but I like it.
6 pork chops (redundant much...?)
3 or 4 shallots, minced
2 tbsp butter (maybe a bit more...)
3 cups of orange juice
1/2 cup brown sugar
3/4 of a can of chicken broth
1 1/2 tbsp corn starch
1 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp paprika
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
dash of cayenne pepper
salt & pepper to taste

In a large (and deep) skillet, melt butter and saute shallots on medium-high heat, stirring regularly to prevent shallots from sticking and burning. When shallots start to soften, add paprika, red pepper, nutmeg, cayenne, and salt and pepper, to taste. Once the shallots have browned, leave the pan on the heat, take a step back from the stove, and add orange juice. The step back is necessary because this should ideally cause a mighty spicy citrus steam-cloud.

Stir in brown sugar and let the sauce reduce for about 10 minutes. Meanwhile, rinse and dry pork chops and place them in a greased baking dish. Season chops with salt and pepper. (Depending on the size of your pork chops, you may have to use a 9x13 and an 8x8. Do not use a cookie sheet, as it won't be deep enough.)Mix cornstarch with chicken broth and add to sauce mixture. Let cook for about ten more minutes. Gently pour sauce over chops--be sure each one gets some shallots on top. Bake at 370 F for about 45 minutes. Disfruta!

Unfortunately, these chops were a big hit and everyone was really hungry, so I didn't get any photo evidence of their goodness. This will have to do.
Happiness. 
& Pasta with fresh tomatoes & basil  & 
spicy browned butter & garlic sauce. mmhmm. 

3 comments:

Richard and McKenna said...

Sounds yummy! I will definitely have to try this soon! Thanks for the recipe! :)

Kristen said...

Hmm, sounds good. I'm glad you found some paprika... I actually brought some to church in my purse, but I didn't see you.

Kels H.M. said...

Dangit! I actually didn't find any, I just made do without. I used allspice & chili powder instead... it wasn't as good. :-/ But thanks, Goober love!