Hi there, we have entered autumn and I am here to talk to you about pork chops.
I got this recipe from Every Plate, a meal prep service my boyfriend used in between jobs when he had more time for cooking. Most of their recipes looked pretty boring, but I liked this one because I like pork chops and it smelled really good when he made it. Also, I found the concept of smashing the pork with a pan enticing.
The original recipe doesn't mention real proportions, maybe because they want you to sign up for their service to get the recipe right. So I had to make my own proportions. Here we go!
The Ingredients
Crucial
-2 pork chops (thinner is better)
-2-4 tablespoons sour cream
-1/2 cup - 1 cup panko breadcrumbs
For the seasoning
-Zest of 1 lemon
-8 teaspoons dried parsley
-1 tablespoon dried dill
-2 teaspoons garlic powder
-2 teaspoons kosher salt
-2 teaspoons dried chives
-2 teaspoons onion powder
-Few twists of freshly ground black pepper
The Recipe
Place pork on a cutting board and do what you have to do to make it 1/3 inch thick. If the pork is already pretty thin, you might get away with just beating it with a heavy pan. I had to buy a meat tenderizer though, and beat the crap out of each one for more than 5 minutes. Here are my tenderized chops.
Then, place your sour cream in a bowl and turn each pork chop over in it until it is evenly coated.
For the next step, zest one lemon and then construct your ranch spice: mix together the dried parsley, dried dill, garlic powder, salt, dried chives, onion powder, and black pepper (I adapted this from this ranch spice recipe). Add the lemon zest, ranch spice, and panko breadcrumbs together in a wide bowl.
Turn your pork chop over in the seasoned breadcrumb mixture until every surface is covered. (I followed the original recipe and did this with a plastic bag, which I now regret because it was not environmentally friendly.)
Now your pork chops are ready for frying. Fill a pan that is safe to deep fry in (stainless steel is fine) with a 1/3-inch-deep layer of oil, and heat until a little panko hitting the oil causes a sizzle.
Lower the heat to medium and carefully add in your pork chops.
Fry for 3-5 minutes on each side. If the chops are browning too quickly, lower the heat. Then remove the pork chops and optionally drain the excess oil with paper towels.
The Result
As you can see, I ate my pork chops with some mashed potatoes and grape tomatoes, as well as a dollop of sour cream.
These pork chops are crispy and appropriately salty on the outside, and soft and juicy on the inside. The ranch spice is nice and herb-y and adds a good amount of flavor. It's a delicious and satisfying meal.
I'm not an expert at cooking meat, so I appreciate any feedback on this recipe. I think the next post will either be about pizza or an Indian dish, so stay tuned!
~Avi
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