Kelly the Culinarian: Cooking with Kelly: Sriracha Pork Chop Recipe

Tuesday, February 25, 2014

Cooking with Kelly: Sriracha Pork Chop Recipe

For the longest time, I resisted the sriracha trend. I had in my mind that I did not care for spicy food. Pay no mind to the fact that I always order spicy rolls when we go out for sushi, then dab them with more wasabi until my eyes sting and my sinuses are cleared for take off.

The distinction is that I don't like stuff in which heat is the sole prerogative - I want spice with soul, depth and purpose. I want the heat to electrify my food, not obscure it. To work together to wake up my palate rather than just burn it off.

And this is when I got on the sriracha train. It's a combination of flavors that bring out hidden notes in food and mean that we go through bottles in an embarrassingly short amount of time. And I'm not the only one: sriracha makes us happy. It's science.


So when Tim enjoyed a sriracha pork chop at Whole Foods, I knew I had to make it at home. Furthermore, the fact that this dish would be amazing is a foregone conclusion.

Heed this advice, though: use a cast-iron skillet. It makes everything better. Get it screaming hot and sear the pork chops for maximum flavor fun.

I decided to serve this with a sauce that was simply pan dripping scraped up using a bit of beer, then reduced and mixed with a touch of Greek yogurt to add creaminess. This is an extra step you can skip, but why waste perfectly awesome fond if you don't have to?

Sriracha Glazed Pork Chops with Sriracha Reduction Recipe
1/4 cup soy sauce
2 tablespoons honey
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 lime, zested and juiced
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon grated ginger
3 tablespoons sriracha sauce
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
1/2 pound pork steaks
1/4 cup beer
2 Tablespoons Greek yogurt

In a large bowl, combine all the ingredients up to the pork chops and whisk to combine. Place the pork into a seal-top bag and pour 3/4 of the sauce over the contents. Seal the bag and gently shake until the sauce coats the meat. I marinated these overnight, but you could get away with 15 minutes if you're in a rush.

Heat a cast-iron skillet to very, very hot. Cook the pork six to eight minutes per side or until thoroughly cooked through, then remove and allow to rest. 

Remove the skillet from the heat and use the peer to deglaze the pan. I used a metal spatula to help scrape up all the caramelized bits, then added the reserved marinade and Greek yogurt. Stir to combine and serve over the pork.

5 comments:

Unknown said...

Nicks begging me to try this. Maybe a few more days for him to get over his BMW lunch and Ill serve this up for him :)

Erin said...

This may be the impetus for me to buy a cast iron pan!

Losing Lindy said...

can you post about how you take care of a cast iron pan? I ended up rusting mine and it was ruined

friendoflucy said...

Hand wash, do not scrub...Dry immediately & then rub on a light coat of vegetable oil after every time you wash it.

Queen Sabrin said...

You can also dry over a low heat on top of the stove. Before seasoning. I find I do not have to rub oil every time I use it but mine are definitely old and seasoned. I've brought back one from rust by removing the rust and resealing.