Tuesday, March 31, 2009

Adobo-Rubbed Pork Chops with Pico de Gallo


Pork chops were on the menu this week, and we wanted to do something new with them. We both liked this recipe on the Epicurious web site for Adobo-Rubbed Pork Tenderloin with Black Bean Pico de Gallo.

We used boneless pork chops instead of pork tenderloin, and made my traditional Pico de Gallo instead of the pico on the recipe that called for black beans.

Below is the part of the recipe we followed (we cut the recipe to three servings; below are ingredients for six) -

Ingredients
  • 6 tbsp paprika
  • 2 tbsp freshly ground black pepper
  • 2 tbsp coarse salt
  • 1 tbsp chili powder
  • 2 tbsp brown sugar (omitted this as we didn't have any on hand)
  • 3 pinches cayenne pepper
  • 24 oz pork tenderloin, trimmed, cut into 3- to 4-oz pieces (we used 3 boneless pork chops)
Directions

  • Preheat oven to 350°F.
  • In small bowl, mix paprika, black pepper, salt, chili powder, sugar, and cayenne.
  • Rub both sides of each tenderloin piece with spice mixture.
  • Preheat oven-safe skillet over medium-high heat and pan-sear pieces until golden brown on both sides.
  • Transfer to oven until done (6 to 8 minutes for each inch of thickness). The chops took about 12 minutes - we tested them with an oven thermometer to make sure they were done (160 degrees).
  • Top pork with the pico and serve

These chops were nicely seared on the outside and perfectly juicy on the inside. The pico was a nice, refreshing topping.

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4 comments:

  1. I best the spice of the pork chops goes really well with the freshness of the pico de gallo - looks delicious!

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  2. Best rub I have had on chops -- Signed the tester :)

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  3. Love the photo. So, your trick to good photos is to shoot in natural light? What do you do when it's not day time? All of my photos have that yellow glow from my light bulb - any suggestions for me? I tend to photograph and write exclusively at night. BTW, the recipe is da bomb too! ~d9

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  4. Hi Denine,

    I do take pics at night and I have played with a few different spots in my kitchen where the light isn't as yello. I considered getting a light box but think my husband would kill me...he already gets annoyed that we can't eat until I get a picture! Another way to get around it is to keep leftovers and make up a plate to photograph the next morning (I rarely do that).

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