Dukkha Crusted Pork Chops with Bacon Sprouts

9KL6QxF80VhuCNQV.jpgAnother recipe for the often asked question of, “What am I going to eat for dinner”. This one is great, because you can pick up the groceries after work, head to the kitchen and start cracking away at it.

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Start off with pork chops. Dry them, then rub a little avocado oil on it (or oil of your choice that can cook at high temps)

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Crust with Dukkha. I bought mine from trader joes. If you are fancy, you can make it yourself! Be fancy.

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In a cast iron skillet, heat some avocado oil, then cook on both sides until done.

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As a side, I went for Bacon sprouts. Cook bacon in a pan, remove bacon from pan and reserve the fat. Toss brussels sprouts in the hot pan with leftover bacon fat. Season with black pepper. Let it brown a little bit. Toss them on a cookie sheet then into the oven to finish. When it’s almost done stir in chopped cooked bacon. Serve with pork chops.

Again, no measurements. If you have questions feel free to contact me! ENJOY!

 

Dune: Jean-Georges Restaurant

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After our engagement, we had dinner at Dune Restaurant at The One & Only Ocean Club. The restaurant was beautiful. They had a koi fish pond leading up to the door, and 3 sides of the walls were glass. There was indoor and outdoor seating, but we opted for indoors because we were still warm from that crazy walk we had earlier.

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We started off with bread, and infused olive oil. You got your choice of which infusion of oil you wanted.

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I chose the prosciutto wrapped pork chop over a bed of glazed mushrooms. So simple yet so delicious. The meat stayed steaming until the end. The flavor combination was perfect, well seasoned and I just ate it as is. It’s a fairly large portion, and I was sad I couldn’t finish it!

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The service was great, like all the service on the islands. We were originally sat next to the window but a large crowd of drunk and rowdy patrons came into our section. The server offered to move us to another table in the other area. We did. We were put in a crowded center table, but as soon as the window freed up, they moved us there and said, “It’s only fair right?”. Since we were at the window originally. They were very thoughtful, friendly and attentive.

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If you are on Paradise Island, and looking for a fabulous semi formal place to dine, I’d definitely suggest Dune.

 

 

Honey Soy Braised Ribs

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I wish you could smell this. It smells amazing. And it was simple! I would put this under “Whats for dinner” except for the fact that it takes about two hours to make, and well… “ain’t nobody got time for that”.

NWSKYfCKmCcugERR.jpgIngredients for the braising liquid.

SlQfFJUBE7V9RjoX.jpgBoil the ribs in ginger and water for about 30 minutes, skimming off the fat. Rinse in cold water, pat dry.

k8038aTOiKGSQHiY.jpgIn a heavy pot, brown it in a little oil, salt & pepper it.

MnPSjcwN1Soq0Jpr.jpgNow the fun part. Let it simmer in the goodness for about 45 minutes, or until the meat is tender and falls off the bone.

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I took the ribs out, strained out the braising liquid into another small sauce pot. Added honey and let it reduce down into a glaze, then served it over brown rice topped with green onion and sesame seeds. YUM.

Honey Soy Braised Ribs
(exactly from Spoon Fork Bacon)
Serves 5 to 7

Ingredients:
3 lbs. pork spare ribs, cut into 1 1/2-2 inch pieces
1 inch piece ginger, peeled and thinly sliced
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
6 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1 tablespoon minced ginger
3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce
1 1/2 cups dry sherry
1/4 cup superfine sugar (granulated is fine)
3 tablespoons honey
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
salt and pepper to taste
honey-soy glaze:
2/3 cup braising liquid
1/4 cup honey
garnishes:
thinly sliced green onion
toasted sesame seeds

Directions:
1. Rinse rib pieces under cold water and place in a large pot. Fill with water and add ginger. Place pot over high heat and boil for 30 minutes, skimming the fat from the surface as it forms.
2. Drain and rinse rib pieces in cold water for a second time, removing any excess fat, debris and ginger.
3. Place a large Dutch oven, or heavy bottom pot over medium-high heat and add oil. Add ribs and season with salt and pepper. Brown for about 3 minutes. Add remaining ingredients to the pot and stir together.
4. Bring mixture to a boil then reduce heat to medium-low. Cover.
5. Simmer mixture for 45 minutes to an hour, stirring occasionally, until meat is tender.
6. Scoop 2/3 cup of the sauce into a small pot (skimming off any excess fat) and stir in honey. Simmer for 15 to 20 minutes or until mixture has reduced by 1/3. Remove from heat and allow to cool for about 15 minutes.
7. Brush glaze over rib pieces and serve over white or brown rice. Top with sliced green onions and sesame seeds. Serve.

I love this site for dinner/party food ideas!

What’s for Dinner?

This happens to me a lot. It's after lunch, and I have nothing for dinner ready. Nothing marinated. Nothing prepped. No rice made. This is a normal occurrence. From my instagram and blog, you're like oh Miemo cooks every day. Well, I do cook often, but if it's Lao food, it's preplanned and I've made a trip to the ethnic super store.

During the week, I get flustered thinking about what am I going to make that isn't going to take me 3 hours to cook. I'm no Rachel Ray, dinner is never ready in 30 minutes (because, HA, jokes on you Rachel, none of us have our mise en place ready to go when we get home).

So I've decided, as much as I am on pinterest and on instagram checking out #dinner. You probably are too. And since you've already seen me cook it on instagram you probably want the recipe. Well now I will share!

Seared Pork Chops, Mac n Cheese and Fresh Green Beans

In this meal, I'm pretty sure that the thing that took me the longest to make were the green beans!

Grocery List
4 bone in pork chops
1 lb of fresh haricot certs, french cut green beans
1 box of mac n cheese mix (and ingredients needed for it)
5 slices of thick cut bacon
1/2 lemon, zest and juice
1 shallot
3 cloves garlic
sliced roasted almonds
butter
olive oil
kosher salt & black pepper

Instructions
1. Boil 1 cup of water. Add 3 tbsp salt and stir to dissolve. Remove from heat. Add 2 cups of cold water and the 3 smashed garlic. Lay the the pork chops in a 13×9 in pan in one layer. Pour the now room temperature water, salt, garlic brine over the chops. Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

2. While the chops are brining, bring another pot of salted water to boil. Blanch the greens for 2 to 3 minutes until tender but crisp. Immediately drain and plunge in an ice bath. Drain and let dry completely. Set aside.

3. Set up your ingredients. Mince shallots, set aside. Measure out 3 tablespoons of butter and 1 1/2 tablespoons of olive oil. Zest half the lemon into another small bowl.

4. Cook bacon. Drain on paper towels then chop into bite size pieces. Make mac and cheese according to box. Stir in bacon. Set aside.

5. Preheat the oven to 400F. When the oven comes to temperature, place a cast iron skillet, or oven safe skillet into the oven for 10 minutes. While this is preheating, remove the pork chops from the brine. Dry with paper towels. Rub a little olive oil on pork chops and season with salt and pepper or favorite seasonings. When preheated, carefully bring the skillet to the stove top. Over medium high heat, sear the pork chops on one side for 3 minutes. Flip over then carefully put the skillet back in the oven for 5-10 minutes (depending on thickness of chops) until the meat thermometer reads 145F at the thickest part. After cooked, remove chops from skillet and let rest while you make the green beans.

6. Heat a saute pan on medium heat. Add olive oil and butter. Stir until butter is melted. Add the shallots in the pan. Season with salt and pepper and sauté for 3-5 minutes until brown. Toss in the green beans and coat well with oil and shallots. Add the lemon zest and juice. Sauté 1-2 minutes until cooked through. Remove from heat and toss with almonds. Season with additional salt and pepper if needed.

Plate your chops, mac n cheese and green beans, enjoy!

If you don't want to follow the instructions (to include multitasking) and just want the individual recipes. See below!

Easy Pork Chops and Haricots Verts

 

Impromptu Korean Dinner

While I was in the middle of packing for my move, I was very adamant about not cooking anymore. My girlfriends still wanted to come over and hang out after work, so they brought the feast to me! I am so lucky to have such awesome friends! Sliced pork belly, seafood pancakes, bulgogi? NOM NOM NOM.

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