The quality of flavor of any dish you make is dependent on the quality of the ingredients that go into it. We don't think any other category of meat has as broad a scope - from fabulous to downright funky- as pork chops.
We like the texture and flavor of bone-in rib chops, cut about 1.5 inches thick. Pork is now raised to be lower in fat than your father's pork chop, but the rib chops have just enough fat to grill well, without drying out. The down side is that with all that fat went a lot of the flavor, so your first job is to put it back.
Marinate the chops overnight in a Ziploc bag with:
1/2 cup soy sauce
1 Tbs. olive oil
2 Tbs. honey
juice of one fresh lemon
1 Tbs. Walker's Woods Jerk Seasoning
2 cloves of garlic, minced or pressed
2" fresh ginger, grated fine
Remove the chops from the marinade, and pat them dry with a paper towel. Start them over medium heat (you can hold your hand 3 or 4 inches away from the grill for less than 4 seconds) and leave them where you put them down for at least 2-3 mins until they have grill marks. Lift them, and rotate them 90 degrees, and let them set another 2-3 mins. Then turn them over and repeat the process.
After the chops are marked, move them to the cooler side of the grill, spritz the fire to cool it down, and rotate the chops a quarter turn every 4-5 mins. Keep basting them with the marinade. Stop basting after about 20 mins in order the cook all the marinade before you remove the chops from the grill. Then discard the rest of the marinade.
After about 30 mins on low, test with a thermometer and remove when the chops reach about 155 degrees. Let them set for at least 5 mins. The temperature will rise about another ten degrees before serving.
Menu Suggestions:
Mango Salsa (see our Jerk Chicken recipe)
Fried Plantains
Mango sorbet with coconut macaroons
Coconut Rice
Rice is simple to prepare - always use a liquid-to-rice ratio of 2/1 - no matter what the liquid is. If you use brown rice, increase that ratio to 2.5/1, and plan on cooking it an additional 20 minutes. Once the liquid comes to a boil and you add the rice, cover the pot, reduce the heat to low, and NEVER - EVER lift the lid and stir - that guarantees a sticky, starchy side dish.
Use a glas sauce pan to prepare rice so you can watch the level of the liquid as it is being absorbed. When the liquid is all gone, turn the burner off, but leave the lid alone - don't open the pan until you are ready to serve.
1/2 tsp sesame oil
1 can low-fat, unsweet coconut milk
1 cup water
pinch of Kosher salt
1 cup white, long-grain rice
1/4 cup Baker flaked coconut, or other fresh coconut, not packed down
sesame seeds for garnish
Put sesame oil, coconut milk, water and salt into a glass sauce pan and bring to a boil. Add coconut flakes and rice, stiring once to mix well. Turn the heat to it's lowest setting, cover, and cook for about 20 minutes. You will begin to smell the roasting rice and coconut when it's done - YUM!
Rice done right will not hold a scoop shape - it's light and fluffy, and crumbles apart. To serve, give the rice one more quick stir, and plate, garnishing with sesame seed.
The recipe for this marinade contains very little heat - even our super-taster friend, Meg, enjoys this dish. A Red Stripe beer and mango salsa will help cool things down.
