Disclaimer on this. I do not like Pork Chops. I'm not a huge fan of Pork really. I mean no- that's not true I do like a good Pork meat, just not Pork Chops. Too often they can be dry, overcooked and plain old bland. When I make them (I stress the rarity of that happening, because like I said, I do not like them) I almost always, always, always use a Brine. What is a Brine you ask? Well it's like a salt water flavor bath for meat.
Brines are great for any type of meat. The salt helps to breakdown and tenderize the meat, allowing it to be nice and juicy when you cook. Brine's are also versatile and a really great way to get subtle flavors into your meat without throwing the spice rack at it. Personally theres nothing wrong with throwing the spice rack at a piece of meat- I do that 99% of the time myself. But a Brine takes some sweet, planning time- a really good brine is done at least 24hrs before you are planning to cook your meat. Yup. A whole damn day.
The flavors you can get out of a brine are practically endless. You can throw some Garlic cloves, Onions, Peppercorns, Lemon, Herbs & Spices of all kinds into a big 'ol pot of Salty water. It's endless really. Most people will boil the spices, Veggies and herbs all together to really get the flavors out of everything, let it cool completely then add the meat before refrigerating the desired time. I personally do it that way and also just at room temperature and I let everything do it's own damn thing. I think it largely depends on how you are planning to season the meat after the Brine. I'm going to stress, you do not go Brine to marinade.
Please, Please, PLEASE don't do that. You MUST rinse off your meat. Think about it. flavoring choices aside, all that salt from the brine is just sitting on your meat. Which ok, if that's what you're going for hey kuddos thats fantastic. I however much prefer to control the salt level in my meat, it will still retain a good amount of the salt in the meat. It's weird to think of it this way, but meats are almost like sponges, they soak up flavoring. So it will soak up- and hold onto- a lot of that saltiness. Now that I've said my peace... on to my Marinades.
Pork Chop Marinade
Prep time: 10 Minutes
Cook Time: 1 day 4 hours
Serving Size 8 Chops
Ingredients
For the Brine:
2 Gallons of Water
1 1/2 Cups of Salt
1 head of Garlic
3 tbls of Pepper Corns
For the Marinade
8 Garlic Cloves (Or one Small head of Garlic)
1 1/2 Bell Peppers (any color is fine- I use Red or Yellow)
1 Red Onion
2 tbls Cumin Powder
2 tbls Onion Powder
2 tbls Dried Rosemary
2 tbls Cracked Black Pepper
3 tbls Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Juice of two Limes
1/2 Cup of water
1/3 Cup of Bitter Orange Juice
Handful of Cilantro
Directions
Prepare your Brine Mixture the night before. If you chose to boil everything together do so for roughly 20 minutes then allow mixture to cool completely before placing your meat into the brining liquid. Store in airtight container and refrigerate overnight or up to 2 days.
The morning of cooking remove your Brine from the refrigerator. Thoroughly rinse your meat before placing into a bowl.
In a Food Processor or Blender, pulse together your Garlic (peeled)*, Onions (roughly chopped), Bell Peppers (roughly diced), Cumin, Onion Powder, Dried Rosemary, Black Pepper and Olive Oil. Make sure your mixture is well pulsed through to just about mush. Add Cilantro and Pulse to incorporate.
Add your mixture to your meat. Add in the juice from two limes, water and your Bitter Orange Juice. Massage everything into your meat. Cover, refrigerate and allow to marinate for at least 2-4 hours or longer before cooking.
How you decide to cook is up to you. Hope you enjoy this marinade!
Duchess Tips:
*the same Garlic you used in the brine can be used for the marinade. Don't waste shit.
Bonus Marinades:
Simple Steak Marinade
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Marinade Time: 2hrs-24hrs
Ingredients
2 tbls Minced Garlic
1 small White or Yellow Onion finely diced
1tsp White Vinegar
1/3 cup of Worcestershire Sauce
2 cups Red Wine (If you wouldn't Drink it- Don't use it here)
1 cup Beef Broth (optional)
Salt
Pepper
Directions
Whisk together all ingredients. Add steak, ensure it is properly coated. Cover and refrigerate for 2 hours before cooking or overnight.
Orange Chicken Marinade
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Marinade Time: 1-4hrs
Ingredients
1 Medium Yellow Onion
6 Garlic cloves minced
1tbls Soy Sauce
1tsp Sesame Oil
2 tbls Honey
2 cups Orange Juice
Directions:
Whisk all your ingredients together. Add chicken and allow to marinade in refrigerator for 1-4hr. This marinade is simple, Chicken doesn't require much marinade time. 1-4hrs should do it nicely. whole thing can be thrown into a roasting pan. This marinade will give your chicken a nice glaze and beautiful crisp from baking.
With Some Type of love,
The Duchess
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