Pork Chops in Spectacular Sauce

Around Wild Type Ranch, the person responsible for our delicious and healthy meals every day is Sara's husband, Ralph. Ralph grew up working in his family’s fish and chip shop in New Zealand, ran a short-order restaurant with his brother and has been cooking for us at Wild Type Ranch across two decades and two states (Texas and Wisconsin).

This incredible recipe is one of his original creations. It features our thick-cut bone-in pork chops for a truly manly meal. Yet, the flavors have a delicate elegance that make the dish and the meal truly special. This one is definitely a special occasion dish; a great way to celebrate the Father in your life!

Ingredients:

For the Chops:

·      4 bone-in thick-cut Wild Type Ranch pork chops

·      Kosher or sea salt to preseason chops

·      1/3 cup Wild type Ranch fatty bacon ends and pieces (or 2 Tablespoons butter)

For the Pork Chop Coating Mixture:

·      1/3 cup all-purpose flour

·      3 teaspoons each finely chopped garlic, Rosemary, Thyme (or 1 teaspoon dried Italian herb mix with ½ teaspoon garlic powder)

·      1 teaspoon onion powder

·      Salt and fresh ground pepper (smoked if possible) to taste

For the Sauce:

·      2 Tablespoons butter

·      1/3 cup dry white wine (Chardonnay works well here)

·      2 Tablespoons all-purpose flour

·      4 cloves garlic finely chopped with

·      4 sprigs fresh Thyme leaves (or 1 Tablespoon finely chopped fresh Rosemary leaves)

·      1 Cup chicken stock or reduced broth

·      2 teaspoons lemon juice

·      1 cup heavy cream

·      2 Tablespoons Dijon mustard

Method:

Thaw chops overnight in the fridge. In the morning, remove the wrap and gently sprinkle both sides of each chop with salt. It needs to be a light even spread, not too much. Return chops (covered) to the fridge for the day. (Helpful Hint: Most meats benefit from this process).

Preheat your oven to 325F/165C. Prepare a skillet that can accommodate the chops. Pan fry the chopped bacon gently until the fat is rendered. Remove the solids and set aside. Dredge the chops in the coating mixture.  Add the chops to the pan and gently sear each side for three to four minutes per side. Remove and set aside. (May need do this step in two batches).

Reheat the pan over a moderate heat and add the white wine to deglaze the pan. Add the 2 Tablespoons butter. Once that is melted and beginning to foam, add the flour and stir/whisk together for a minute or so, but don’t let it burn. Stir in the mixed garlic and herbs. Cook gently for a minute stirring constantly. As it heats, gently add the chicken stock and make a nice gravy-style sauce, stirring or whisking as liquids are added. Add the mustard, the lemon juice and mix gently for all ingredients to make friends with each other. Finally, add the heavy cream and season (should you wish) with salt and pepper (smoked salt/pepper adds a nice flavor profile). Return the bacon solids to this sauce.

Place the chops into a suitable greased oven pan and drizzle the sauce over everything. Leave in the oven at 325F/165C for five minutes, then reduce to 275F/135C. Bake until a food thermometer reads 145F/63C internal temp near the bone (about 25 minutes, check at 15, especially if using our smaller boneless butterfly chops)

Remove and allow to stand covered for ten minutes before serving.

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