Pretty much what I do around noon everyday is go to the deep freezer and see what kind of meat we have and base my dinner meal around that. I need to be better at meal planning, but with a 2 month old, this is the best I can do for now.
I was a little hesitant at first to use this recipe because I thought the balsamic would be way to strong, but it really mellowed out while cooking and was SO delicious. I even ventured out and used the cast iron skillet to pre-cook AND bake the chops. My first experience using a cast iron skillet all on my own was absolutely fantastic and I can't wait to use it again!
I got the recipe from The Meanest Mamma, but I made a couple changes/substitutions which are italicized below.
Ingredients:
- 4 (3/4-inch-thick) pork chops, ~2lbs
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 2 tablespoons F.O.C. (fat of choice, I used coconut oil) — for cooking the pork chops
- 1 tablespoon F.O.C. for sauteing shallots (I used EVOO)
- ~3 oz shallots or onion, peeled and diced (more would be even better, but that’s all I had)
- 3-4 large cloves of garlic
- 1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
Instructions:
Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees.
Pat pork dry and season both sides with sea salt and pepper. In a large oven-proof skillet (or have a second, oven-proof dish ready to transfer to, if necessary), heat oil/fat over medium heat. Add the chops and brown them on both sides, ~2-3 minutes per side.
While the chops are cooking, add a little oil to a small sauce pan, over medium-to-low heat, and saute the shallots/onions and garlic for a couple of minutes. Once the shallots/onions and garlic have softened up and turned golden brown, add the balsamic vinegar and a little more salt and pepper (to taste). Cook sauce until the ingredients combine and start to thicken up, ~2-3 minutes.
Pour the sauce over the pork chops and transfer the skillet to the oven. Cover skillet and bake the pork chops, in the sauce for ~30 minutes, or until temperature reaches 160 degrees.
Serve with favorite veggies and be sure to pour sauce over the chops for maximum flavor.
