Turkey season is off n running here States side. Though Thanksgiving is done and dusted the next big turkey holiday is Christmas, which is only a few weeks away. Last year I did a post around this time about Salting a turkey, which is a technique used with salt to create moisture in the meat as well as adding delicious flavour. The salt draws the moisture out of the meat but then re-absorbs it so in effect you’re actually brining it in it’s own juices. Because I’ve tried and tested this technique with turkey, I was curious to see if it would work as well with a smaller cut and different type of meat. Also with peeps being tired of turkey (for now) I figured I’d go with the other white meat….pork. This turned out really tasty and is a great way put some juicy flavour into those leaner proteins like turkey breast, chicken breast and pork loin.

RECIPE:
Serves 4

1 1/2 lbs grass fed or organic pork loin chops (4 x 5 oz portions, approx.)
3 tbsp salt
4 sprigs fresh rosemary
4 sprigs fresh thyme
Black pepper

DIRECTIONS:

Place the raw pork chops in a large bowl or dish and coat with salt and herbs. Cover and refrigerate in same bowl for a minimum of 6 to 24 hours.

Remove chops from fridge 1 hour before cooking so they’ll return to room temperature. This is to ensure the meat will cook evenly.

Preheat grill or saute pan. Pat chops dry with paper towel before cooking. Sprinkle with black pepper. Sear on medium heat for 3 minutes on each side.

Because pork chops are so lean they will over cook quickly so you want to about cook them to medium and then let rest for 2 minutes before eating. They’ll be perfectly cooked. Easy enough right? Give it a go and let me know what you think!

All recipes are made with the finest quality farmers market whole foods, natural and non-processed ingredients as much as possible.

Compliments of Bon Appetite

Those of you over here Stateside are well aware that turkey season is just about here (Thanksgiving is next Thursday). I always associate turkey with Christmas but now since I’m over here I get a double dose with both holidays which for me equals lots of naps. By the time Santa comes I’ll have had turkey soup, turkey sandwiches, turkey stew, well you get the point.
There have been many articles about how best to cook turkey so it doesn’t dry out, wrapping it in bacon, basting with butter, wrapping it in soaked muslin and most recently brining. I’ve been brining my birds (too many to mention!) for a few years now and have always had great results. To see me in action click here. However there’s a new kid on the block: SALTING.
This is all over the mags and papers right now so here’s the scoop: All you do is salt the turkey a few days in advance, say 3 days ahead of cooking. Rub the salt into the flesh, a massage if you will, and pop it in the fridge in a sealable plastic bag. Then everyday prior to cooking give her a ruba dub dub to make sure the salt is spread evenly. How it works: The salt draws the moisture out of the meat but then re-absorbs it so in effect you’re actually brining it in it’s own juices. Apparently the bird is not salty when cooked. Sounds pretty good right? Check out the recipe from the LA Times.
Let me just say that I haven’t tried this yet but will be. I’d love to hear some feedback from those of you who’ve tried this out.