Monday, June 20, 2011

Pork Chops w/ Balsamic Blueberry Reduction


Happy Monday everybody!

How was everyone's weekend?  Ours was pretty busy!  Spent the day Saturday doing tons of errands.  Haircut and color (much-needed - and it looks hot!) was a major highlight.  Hehe, no pun intended.  But we also managed to snag lunch at the first ever Louisville Food Truckus Ruckus.  In a matter of just a few short months, Louisville's food truck scene has exploded.  There's at least 8 or so regulars around town now.  Pretty awesome right?  We got a chance to sample works from Busta Grill (one of the best Chicken Sausages ever - topped with a chimichurri coleslaw and tomato/basil pesto was seriously delicious!).  And then MozzaPi's Thai Pi was awesome too.  Curry, bean sprouts, cilantro, and peanuts made for one delicious pie.  And the truck itself was nothing short of amazing - they had a crazy cool wood-fire grill on the end of the truck to cook all of their pizzas to order!


Anyway... I never got around to posting any of those Red, White, & Blue Party recipes last week, did I?  Well, have no fear, I've got a mighty delicious one planned for today!

Ingredients:
Adapted from Rock Recipes' Recipe


8 bone-in pork chops
3 tablespoons olive oil
3 garlic cloves, minced
salt and pepper, to taste
1/2 cup white wine
1/2 teaspoon thyme
pinch of nutmeg
3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 cup blueberries
2 tablespoons brown sugar
juice from 1 lemon
3 tablespoons unsalted butter

Preheat oven to lowest temperature (mine was 170F).  Heat a large non-stick skillet (a cast iron works well here) under medium high heat and add olive oil. 


Season pork chops with salt and pepper on both sides.  Add 2 pork chops at a time to the skillet and cook for about 4-5 minutes per side.  Let pork chops keep warm in the preheated oven on a baking sheet.

To make reduction, combine garlic, white wine, thyme, nutmeg, balsamic vinegar, blueberries, and brown sugar under high heat in a saucepan.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer for about 10 minutes or until mixture is slightly thickened.  Stir in lemon juice and butter and simmer for a couple more minutes.  Season with salt and pepper, to taste.

Top pork chops with blueberry reduction and dig in!

This is definitely one of those meals that is simple, but sure to impress!  I loved the combo of blueberries and pork, and if you haven't tried it... you need to!


Hope you all have a great Monday!  But for now... I'm off to start Day 1 of my half-marathon training.  Good thing it's only a Stretch & Strengthen Day.  Should be easy =)

23 comments:

  1. Ooo...the blueberry reduction looks so good! I've never thought to put blueberry on pork. Great idea!

    -Emily

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  2. I will need to try these together-I have quite a bit of blueberries. Love the pig dish! thanks for sharing.

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  3. I wonder if those food trucks will ever come to the Midwest. Your pork chops look awesome! The blueberry reduction is a great addition of flavor.

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  4. I'm a big fan of blueberry sauce in savory dishes. I love the idea of combining with balsamic vinegar.

    Good luck with the half-marathon!

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  5. This sounds AMAZING!!! I would never have thought of blueberries and pork, but it looks like a stunner!

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  6. I heard about the food truck event on Facebook. It sounds so cool! That serving dish is awesome and we are now loaded up on blueberries so this recipe is perfect!

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  7. This looks great---I love the idea of the mix of balsamic and blueberry...and anything with the word "reduction" in the name sounds good to me :)

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  8. Pork and blueberry sounds like a great combination. I just made some blueberry sauce but used it all up in waffles and oatmeals =( Should have read your post first to use it with pork chops!

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  9. un plat délicieux plein de saveurs j'aime beaucoup
    bonne soirée

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  10. I'm going to remember this the next time I make pork chops because I only know how to prepare them two ways. Thanks for sharing!

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  11. What a wonderful way to serve pork chops. They look and sound delicious. I hope you have a great day. Blessings...Mary

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  12. Yum, this looks delicious. A fantastic pork chop for summertime!

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  13. Pork pairs so well with fruit...I don't know why I've never tried it with blueberries. Looks incredibly delicious~

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  14. I'm going to have to be on a lookout for some porkchops on sale, cause this recipe looks so tasty. :)

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  15. Great idea of balsamic blueberry reduction. The pork chops certainly look succulent and delicious.

    http://spoon-and-chopsticks.blogspot.com/

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  16. I have never seen or eat this but it's just yumm. i think blueberry give nice taste in this dish, great idea. tnanks for sharing this.

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  17. Whenever I think of pork chops I think of my mama serving them with homemade chunky applesauce. Fruit and pork are a perfect marriage so I can only imagine how delicious this blueberry sauce is over the top. Yummy!

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  18. Blueberries and pork is amazing! My fiance had made something similar to this, but I think without the balsamic. We're so going to have to try this!

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  19. This is new to me Peggy, have not seen and tried before on pork and blueberries, not at Malaysia for sure.

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  20. That looks gorgeous! I really miss blueberries, they make such great sauces.

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  21. I made this reduction just today and it was, indeed, delicious! Since I didn't have pork chops to pair it with, I actually just toasted a slice of bread with cheese on top, and added a bit of the reduction on top of that. Also great that way!

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  22. I love that pan, it's SO CUTE. And I love the blueberry reduction, what an incredible idea!

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  23. I LooOoooOooVE this recipe! I've made it several times & it's become one of those great standbys for when I needed to make something quick, delicious, EASY, and also really pretty lol Tomorrow I'm serving it for some dinner guests with corn and oven roasted potatoes :) Should be fabulous! Thanx for posting this wonderful, flavorful recipe :D

    -Jayshree

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