Salt Cured Pork Chops Recipes

SUGAR CURED SMITHFIELD LEAN PORK CHOP OVER HICKORY WITH RED'S APPLE BAKED BEANS AND GRILLED PINEAPPLE SLAW

Steps:

• Mix the brown sugar, salt and pepper together and rub vigorously into the pork. Refrigerate 4 to 6 hours. Place chops over medium hot coals for 5 minutes and turn 1/4 turn. Cook for 5 minutes and then flip the chop over. Cook for 5 minutes; turn 1/4 turn; cook another 5 minutes. Allow the chop to rest for 5 minutes on the cool side of the grill.
• Red's Apple Baked Beans: In a cast iron pot with a lid, cook the bacon over medium heat, stirring until browned. Add onion and garlic and cook until browned. Add ketchup, molasses, mustard, sugar, and jalapeno and bring to a boil. Add apples and baked beans and stir to combine thoroughly. Cook on stove top or side grill about 1 hour covered over medium low heat.
• Grilled Pineapple Slaw: Place pineapple slices over medium hot grill and brown for 3 to 5 minutes. Turn over and brown second side. Slice the pineapple on bias very thinly and toss in a bowl with cabbage and carrot. Mix the vinegar, sour cream and salt to make a dressing and mix in with the pineapple, carrots and cabbage. Place the pineapple slaw on a plate and spread it around to cover the entire plate. Place the baked beans in the center of the slaw, and place the pork on top.

SALT CURED PORK CHOPS

Steps:

• Combine the salt, sugar, and pepper. Mix well.
• Put the chops on a wire rack in a baking pan or any container that is large enough to accommodate the rack.
• Generously cover the chops with the cure using about 2-3 tablespoons per chop making sure they are totally covered with the cure.
• Place the container of chops in the fridge for 6 hours uncovered.
• Remove from fridge and thoroughly rinse the chops and pat dry.
• Place the chops back into the container on top of the rack and return to the fridge for at least 1 hour.
• Heat cast iron skillet medium to medium high with the cooking oil and cook the chops flipping once until cooked through.
• Grilling is excellent as well!

CURED PORK CHOPS WITH SWEET POTATOES, BACON, AND ROMESCO

Steps:

• Submerge the pork chops completely in the brine, and refrigerate for 24 hours.
• Light the grill 30 to 40 minutes before you're ready to cook, and take the pork chops out of the refrigerator to bring them to room temperature. If they're wet from the brine, pat them dry with paper towels.
• When the coals are broken down, red, and glowing, brush the pork chops with the olive oil, and place them on the grill. Cook the pork chops 5 to 7 minutes on the first side (depending on how thick they are), rotating them a couple of times, until they're seared and have a nice color. Turn them over and cook another 4 to 5 minutes or so, rotating them often, until medium-rare to medium. You can peek inside, near the bone; they should be a little pink.
• Arrange the sweet potatoes on a large warm platter, and drizzle about 1/4 cup romesco over them. Place the grilled pork chops on top, and slather each one with a generous spoonful of romesco. Serve the rest of the romesco on the side.
• Preheat the oven to 400°F.
• Peel the sweet potatoes, and cut them into 1 1/2-inch cubes. Place them in a large bowl and toss with the sugar and reduced sherry.
• In a medium sauté pan, cook the butter over medium heat 6 to 8 minutes, until it's brown and smells nutty. Remove from the heat and let cool a few minutes. Add the sage and thyme to the butter, and pour it over the sweet potatoes, scraping the pan with a rubber spatula to get all the brown bits. Toss with a large spoon, being careful of the hot butter. Season with 1 tablespoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Transfer the sweet potatoes to a large roasting pan and bake in the oven 50 minutes to 1 hour, until the potatoes are caramelized and tender. Stir with a metal spatula every so often, to coat the potatoes evenly with the butter and sugar.
• While the potatoes are cooking, slice the bacon lengthwise into 3/8-inch-thick slices. Stack them in two piles, then cut the strips crosswise into 3/8-inch even-sided rectangles, or lardons. Heat a large sauté pan over medium heat for 1 minute. Add the bacon, and cook about 5 minutes, until it's tender and lightly crisped. Using a slotted spoon, transfer it to a plate.
• When the sweet potatoes are done, remove the pan from the oven and toss in the bacon and spinach. Taste for seasoning.
• The chops need to soak in the brine for 24 hours, so plan ahead. You can make the romesco the day before. And you can cook the sweet potatoes in the morning and reheat them just before serving.

BRINE-CURED PORK

Steps:

• Put 2 1/2 gallons cold water in a large, nonreactive container that will hold the meat and brine. Stir in the salt and sugar. Slightly crush and add the bay leaves, peppercorns, clove, allspice, and chili peppers. Add the garlic and thyme. Add the pork and put a plate on top to keep the meat submerged. Refrigerate for 5 days or more.
• Remove the pork from the brine and pat dry. Roast pork loin for about 1 hour, grill over a medium fire, or slice into very thin chops and brown them in a cast-iron pan. They will cook very quickly, about 1 minute per side. Finish with a good fistful of chopped parsley and garlic if you wish. A brined shoulder is good boiled or braised, and is delicious to add to cooked beans.

BRINE-CURED PORK CHOPS

Steps:

• To make the brine, dissolve the salt and sugar in 1 gallon of warm water in a large bowl. In a mortar, slightly crush juniper and allspice berries and the peppercorns along with the bay leaves and herbs; add to the brine. When the brine is cool, add pork chops and completely submerge, putting weights on top of a plate if necessary. Refrigerate for at least 2 days and up to 3 days.
• To prepare the chops, remove from the brine about 2 hours before cooking and dry with paper towels. Rub them with a bit of olive oil and pepper. (You may also perfume the meat at this point with a few sprigs of fresh rosemary, placed on top of and beneath the chops). Allow the chops to come to room temperature.
• Grill the chops (partly covered if possible to control flaming) over medium-hot coals about 5 to 7 minutes a side, or fry 3 at a time in 2 preheated heavy-bottomed skillets over medium-high heat. Place them on a warm platter and cover loosely with foil. Allow them to rest about 10 minutes. Sprinkle with salt if needed.

HOW TO "DRY-BRINE" PORK CHOPS

Steps:

• Mix kosher salt, black pepper, and cayenne pepper together in a small bowl to make the dry brine. Generously apply mixture to both sides of pork chops. Transfer chops to a rack on a paper towel-lined baking sheet. Refrigerate uncovered 18 to 24 hours.
• Preheat grill to medium or medium-high heat. Brush pork chops on each side with a few drops of vegetable oil.
• Grill chops until internal temperature reaches 135 degrees F (60 degrees C), turning to evenly brown on each side. Transfer to platter and allow to rest 5 minutes.

CIDER-CURED PORK CHOPS

Steps:

• To make the brine, dissolve the salt in 1/2 gallon of warm water in a large bowl. Add the pepper, pour in the apple cider and mix. Drop the pork chops into the brine and add enough additional apple cider so that the chops lurk in the liquid like frogs in a pond. Cover and refrigerate for at least 8 hours and up to 72.
• To prepare the chops, preheat oven to 400 degrees. Remove chops from brine and dry with paper towels. Rub them with 2 tablespoons of the olive oil and season well with salt and black pepper.
• Heat the remaining olive oil in two oven-safe skillets and brown the chops, three to a pan, for 4 minutes a side. Place skillets in oven for 6 to 8 minutes and then remove chops to a warm platter. Cover loosely with foil and allow them to rest for about 10 minutes.
• Serve with caramelized onions and apples, and drizzle with mock Bordelaise sauce.