Okay, so the other night I got a little creative (which doesn't always work out to my advantage; ask Debra) and decided to "make up" what I thought was going to be a marinade for barbecued pork chops, but instead ended up being a topping that I put on the pork chops after they were cooked. Here is the jist for the whole thing; the pork chops first, then the topping:
4 - Six to Eight Ounce Boneless Pork Chops (thawed)
1 tbsp. Butter
1 tbsp. garlic, minced
sea salt and ground black pepper4 - Six to Eight Ounce Boneless Pork Chops (thawed)
1 tbsp. Butter
1 tbsp. garlic, minced
Preheat grill/barbecue to 450F. Sprinkle a light coating of the salt and pepper on the chops. Preheat a skillet large enough for all four chops on a medium flame for five minutes. Drop in butter and melt, turning back flame to 1/4. When butter is almost starting to turn brown, drop in garlic and quickly mix with butter. Garlic should immediately start to brown. Quickly put the chops in the skillet and sear, seasoned side down for about a minute and a half, at the same time sprinkling salt and pepper on the unseasoned side. Next turn over and sear for a minute and a half on the other side. When both sides have been seared for a minute and a half, remove from skillet and put on the grill on an upper rack. If you don't have an upper rack, reduce the cooking temp to 400F, and keep an eye on it so the fat doesn't catch on fire. Cook five minutes on a side, for a total of 20 minutes. Remove from grill and top with the topping below.
1 - Large Hothouse Tomato
1/4 - Large Brown onion
1/4 cup - Cilantro
2 full stalks - Green Onion
1 tbsp - garlic, minced
sea salt
ground black pepper
1/4 cup (?) - olive oil
1-2 tbsp.(?) - balsamic vinegar
2 tbsp. - brown sugar
1 tbsp. - red chili pepper flakes
In a processor, puree the tomato, brown and green onion, cilantro, and garlic. Pour puree into a skillet and bring to a simmer over a medium flame. While simmering, add roughly 1/2 tbsp sea salt, 1/2 tbsp red chili flakes, and 1/2 ground black pepper. After adding salt mixture will become runnier; this is normal. If mixture starts to boil or burn, turn down the flame; you don't want toasted puree, you want a puree reduction. They're different. Add brown sugar and continue to turn and stir mixture while simmering. Once mixture becomes slightly thicker, add about 2 tbsp of olive oil and 1/4 tbsp of chili flakes, and blend with mixture. Wait about two minutes, while continuing to stir, and add 1 tbsp of balsamic vinegar. Continue to stir for about two to three more minutes and then taste. If the mixture is too spicy or peppery, add 1/2 to 1 tbsp more of balsamic, depending on your preference. If it is too sweet, add a little more salt, pepper, and/or chili flakes, depending on your preference. If, at this point, the mixture is too dry or thick (serving consistency should be slightly thicker than pickle relish) add just enough olive oil to thin it. By now, the pork chops you were making above should be just a couple minutes from being done and when they are, this reduction will be just right for topping the pork chops. You can also use this reduction white meat chicken, especially grilled boneless chicken breasts, but I haven't tried that yet.
