Teriyaki Pork Chops with Chinese Sesame Peanut Butter Noodles

I made spaghetti the other nite and ended up with some leftover pasta. I  could have put the leftover sauce on it but when I do that nobody eats it. So I saved the sauce for another meal. I hated to toss out that pasta tho so I put it in a plastic bag with the intention of using it the next day or so. Then I remembered a Chinese noodle dish a friend made many yrs ago. I loved it.

And so I started looking online for something like it. I knew I could use this spaghetti in place of oriental noodles. And I knew it had some peanut butter in it, also veggies. I found one or two I liked but it had no meat in it. I wanted a whole meal. I searched in my freezer and found two pork chops. And so I decided to make Teriyaki sauce for those. But it was getting late and I had no time to marinate them.

I heated up the marinade to blend the flavors, then poured some over the chops. I decided to bake them in the marinade. I didn't have time to BBQ and I didn't want to watch the broiler or fry them on top of the stove. I figured baking them in the marinade would infuse them with the flavor and help evaporate it too, into a sauce. I still had to make the noodle dish and I wasn't sure yet how that would come about. Baking the chops left my hands free for the rest. It actually was a good idea. By the time the chops where half done, I had all the veggies chopped and figured out how I was going to make the sauce. And so this recipe will be for two but you could easily double it or more. I will say it was the bomb! And the heat from the pepper flakes was just right......you knew there was heat but it didn't overwhelm the other flavors.

Teriyaki Pork Chops with Chinese Sesame Peanut Butter Noodles   Serves 2.

First make the Teriyaki sauce:
    1/3 cup mirin (Japanese sweet rice wine) ( didn't have this but I did have my ginger preserved in a jar with dry sherry and used some of this liquid instead)
    1/2 cup soy sauce
    3tb. rice vinegar
    1 tb. sesame oil
    1 tb. honey
    3-4 cloves garlic, minced
    1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger
    1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes
    1/2c. orange juice

 Put in a microwaveable container and heat for 2min. on high. You could also bring to a boil and simmer a few min. on the stove. This is to start to infuse the flavors into the liquids. Set aside.

I used two pork chops because its what I had on hand. You could just marinate pork or chicken strips in some of this marinade if you wish and stir fry quickly. Because I decided this late, I wanted a quick meal. So I put the chops into a baking pan, poured about 1/3 of the mixture over them and baked them in a 400 degree oven. By the time they are half done, you will be ready to make the noodle mixture.

 While the pork is baking, chop up your veggies.

Noodle mixture:

About 2c. of precooked spaghetti (leftover is perfect for this)

As much of any veggie you would like to use. I used half of a broccoli crown, chopped, 4 mushrooms chopped, 1/2 of a small red onion , sliced thinly and one carrot shaved into strips with my veggie peeler. You could also add peas, snow peas, green onion, peppers, bean sprouts, or anything else you might have around. Its a good way to use up leftovers and bits of things. The ratio of noodles to veggies is about 1/3 veggies to 2/3 noodles. Its not meant to be a veggie dish but of course you could do that if you wish.

Also 1/4c. peanut butter. Recipes seem to call for smooth but I had organic crunchy here and I liked it. Little bits of nuts throughout the mix were delish. :)

First take remainder of marinade and add the peanut butter. Again put in microwave for two minutes to melt the peanut butter and make it easier to whisk into the sauce. Taste this. I found my peanut butter took away some of the sweetness so I added a tsp. of sugar to it to balance it. Since this was fresh organic butter that may have had something to do with it so taste and adjust to what you think you would like. However you don't want it really sweet, just a hint.

 Then chopped veggies. Better to do this all at once so the stir fry goes quickly. Once these are chopped, check pork chops. They should be about half done by now and browning nicely. Take out of oven and turn them over and return to oven till the noodle mix is done.

Add a tb or so of vegetable oil in a pan. I have a stir fry wok pot but you could use a fry pan too. Get the oil really hot then add the broccoli. Stir and let cook a minute. Then add the carrot strips and cook 2 min. more. 

 Add the onions and mushrooms since these don't need as much time to cook. ( here's where you would add snow peas, peas, sprouts, peppers, etc. since they don't take long to cook). If it looks like it might need a bit more oil, add it. Mushrooms absorb it fast. Cook till mushrooms look like they are starting to shrink. Then add pasta and stir well to heat thru. 

 Put the rest of the marinade with the peanut butter on the noodle mix and stir in well and heat thru till sauce thickens. Check the chops, they should be done about now unless they were thick ones.

To serve, put some noodle mix on a plate and top with chopped cilantro (or green onion if you like). Top with pork chop and any juices in the pan. 

Tuscan Pork and Beans

Long ago I had Tuscan beans at a restaurant and I really liked them. On and off thru the yrs. I would search for recipes and end up never making them. Recently someone gave me several bags of dried beans so I figured I need to find some good bean recipes to use these up. I took a couple of recipes and bit of this and that and tweaked it to make it my own. I decided that I wanted to make a one pot meal sort of like a cassoulet.

I will say this, all I found in my freezer right now was a center cut boneless pork roast. I thought this would work good since it had a nice layer of fat on it. While this turned out yummy, the pork is dry. Next time I will use a fattier piece of pork. I say that because on this pork roast was a few of the darker meat pieces and they were excellent, not dry. Also I think Ill make the beans a bit soupier. I didn't add more water when I put the spinach in and I think it would have been better with another cup of that or stock.

After all tho it was an excellent experiment and one Ill be making again. My bf says he would love these leftovers in a tortilla. While I know its Italian, I agree with him. I also think just the beans alone would be incredible to serve with other meals. 

 Tuscan Pork and Beans Makes about 4 servings.

2c. dried white beans
5-6c. water
Half a head of garlic, peeled
Two nice sage branches
1/4c. extra virgin olive oil
1 (15oz.) can tomatoes with juice
2c. chicken broth

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix all together in a large dutch oven and bring to a boil. Meanwhile.......

About 3lbs. of pork, either butt or country ribs as long as its got fat and marbling
Salt, pepper, garlic powder
Oil
1/2c. white wine

 Sprinkle pork with S, P and garlic powder and rub in all over. Heat a bit of oil in a pan and brown pork well. Remove and put in pot with bean mix. Pour wine into pan that had the pork in it to deglaze. Pour deglazing liquid into bean pot too. 

 When pot is boiling, put in oven to bake. Stir occasionally till beans are done and liquid is absorbed, about 2 1/2-3hrs.  When beans are done add about a half of a lb. bag of frozen spinach. You could add some fresh if you have it around. It doesn't take much to cook it.  Cook about another half hr.

You may need to add more liquid to this as it cooks. My beans were done but a bit al dente so if I had more time I would have done this.

Easy Smoked Pork Chops

(Dinner: smoked pork chop, mixed veggies, caprese salad and mac and cheese---I know its in a lot of my pics but the man loveeeeee mac and cheese.)
We love smoked pork chops. In my family we made them with eggs for breakfast in the morning. They can be a bit pricey in the stores tho. I love smoked meats and pork is one of the better things to smoke but I don't have a smoker here. And so the other day while online, I noticed a friend mention making pork chops with a smoked paprika rub. I had an aha!!! moment then because I bought some and never used it. I always planned on experimenting with it and never got around to it.

And so I asked my online friend if she would share the recipe and she did. And in the process I told her I often use brown sugar for my rubs, I find the flavor more mellow. She liked that. I like that we can share ideas like this online. (Thank you Clarice!)   Storybook Woods

 So I took her recipe and cut it down to about 1/3 because I wasn't sure if we would like this or not. I tweaked it my way and added my favorite herb.....thyme.

I rubbed the pork chops (there is only two cuz there's just two of us) and let them sit till my other half got home. He grilled them while I made the rest of dinner. And I must say this is a rub Ill use often!! He loved the chop so much he picked it up in his fingers to get to the meat on the bone before he was done with it. He never does that. He also said it was so good I should make it again. And so I will.

Smoked Paprika Rub

1/4 c. smoked paprika
1/4 c. brown sugar
1/4 c. salt, I use kosher
a scant 1/4 c garlic powder or granulated
1/8 c. fresh ground pepper (I do mine in a mill, when I need it)
2 tsp. thyme or use your favorite herb

 Mix together in a small bowl. I store mine in small jars in my cabinet. Rub generously onto the meat you will be cooking and let sit awhile so it can season the meat. We grilled these, but the weather was getting wild and windy and I did consider baking them if we couldn't grill.

Seas Baked Breaded Pork Chops

We love these. I use mustard as the base to have the breadcrumb mix adhere to the meat. Baking them makes them really tender and tasty.

Breaded Center Cut Pork Chops

1/2 c. breadcrumbs (use flavored or not)
1/2 c. grated Parmesan cheese
1 tbsp. dried parsley
1 tsp. garlic powder
1/4 tsp. thyme
S & P to taste
Dijon mustard
6 (3/4 inch thick) center cut pork chops
Olive oil

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Mix first 6 ingredients together in a bowl or on a flat plate , this will be used for breading the chops. This mix of breadcrumbs and cheese is the same one I use in my Sesame Chicken recipe (blog in my list). I make a bunch of it at a time then take out what I think I need for whatever I'm making and add the other ingredients. Its a really good combo of flavors.

Rinse chops and pat dry. Brush with Dijon mustard on both sides and dip in the breading coating well. How thick a layer of mustard is up to you, we like alot. It gives a subtle layer of flavor that many do not recognize but just love. I stumbled on this by accident one day playing around. I bake my chops in a lg. 13x9 pan or a baking sheet that I have drizzled with olive oil. Don't put alot on there , just so they wont stick much. Pork has enough fat of its own. I only used extra virgin olive oil around here but you can use what you want. Once all are coated then I drizzle once again with oil.

I bake these for about a half hr, then turn them over and watch them for another half hr. Ive also turned off the oven when they were still barely pink and left them in the residual heat to finish without over cooking when I was waiting for the bf to come home from work. They come out nice and tender. Makes 6 servings.

Gourmet Dinner Parties Part 3

Ok part 4 has the other dishes served and dessert. While I'm not fond of tofu this wasn't bad.

TOFU WITH GINGER DRESSING 4 SERVINGS

I doubled this too but frankly I remember it making a ton so maybe you wont want too do that.

3/4lb bean sprouts

2tb. fresh lemon juice

2tb. brown sugar

2tb. peanut oil

1tb. dark sesame oil

3 med. green onions, thinly sliced

4 firm or tender tofu cakes, rinsed, quartered and cut into slivers

1/2 lb. sm. mushrooms, thinly sliced

1 bunch radishes, thinly sliced

1 med. carrot, thinly sliced

3tb. soy sauce

2tb. rice wine vinegar

1 1/2 tb. freshly grated, peeled ginger-root

1 lemon, thinly sliced, seeded and dipped into minced fresh parsley (garnish)

Bring 2 1/2qts. of water to boil. Place bean sprouts in colander and pour boiling water over , rinse in cold water. Dry sprouts well, with paper towels. Spread on serving platter. Refrigerate. Combine soy sauce, lemon juice, vinegar, brown sugar,peanut oil, ginger, sesame oil and gr. onion in med. bowl and mix well. Gently fold in tofu without breaking (use rubber spatula). Chill 30-60min. Just before serving, arrange mushrooms, radishes, and carrots around edge of platter. Drain dressing from tofu and spoon over vegetables. Mound tofu in center. Garnish with the lemon.

DICED PORK WITH WALNUTS 4 SERVINGS

4-5 lg. thin rounds of carrot

4-5 lg. thin slices of ginger-root

1/2lb. lean pork, diced

1/2c. walnut pieces

1c. vegetable oil for frying

2 scallions, cut into 1/2in. pieces

Soak carrot and ginger for 10min. in salted iced water. With cookie cutter or knife cut into flower shapes. Combine pork and Mixture A (1/2tsp. baking soda, 2tsp. cornstarch, 1tb. water); let stand 10min. Boil walnuts for 5min., drain and pat dry. Heat wok; add oil; when hot deep fry walnuts 2min. , remove, drain and set aside. Reheat oil; cook pork over mod. heat, 2min.; remove and drain. Pour off all but 2tb. oil; stir fry carrot, ginger, and scallions 1-2min. Add pork, Mixture B (combine 1/2tsp. salt, 2tb. chicken broth, 1/2tsp. cornstarch, dash of pepper) and walnuts and stir fry 1min. Serve.

BEEF AND SCALLOP SAUTE 4 SERVINGS

I doubled this for the party

2tb. peanut oil

1tsp. minced fresh garlic

1lb. trimmed beef tenderloin (narrow end), cut into pieces 1/2in. thick, then halved crosswise

3/4lb. sea scallops

1 1/4c. diagonally sliced green onions

1tb. flavored brine (recipe follows)

Freshly ground pepper......Pinch of red pepper

Heat oil in wok till almost smoking. Add garlic and beef, then scallops and stir fry about 30sec. Add remaining ingredients and stir fry another 30sec.

Flavored Brine Makes about 1 1/2c.

2c. water

2tb sliced peeled ginger

1tb. freshly ground white pepper

1 tsp. red pepper flakes

1 1/2c. coarse salt

Combine first 4 ingredients in med. saucepan and bring to a boil. Gradually stir in salt. Reduce heat and simmer 10min. Strain thru a sieve lined with damp towel. Store in tightly covered jar. Keeps almost indefinitely. ( Could be a nice addition to so many dishes for extra flavor)

SEA'S HAM GLAZE

One more recipe for the spring time.......since its the time of the year we tend to have ham for easter.
SEA'S HAM GLAZE makes enough for about a 10-12lb ham
Whole cloves to stud the ham with
4tb. Dijon mustard
1 lg. clove garlic, mashed
1/2c. Chinese duck sauce
Dash of orange juice
1/2 c. brown sugar
Heat oven to 325 degrees. With a sharp knife score the top of the ham in a diamond pattern. Stud with cloves at every intersection. Combine mustard, garlic, and duck sauce with enough orange juice to make a syrupy mixture. Spread evenly over top and sides of ham. Sprinkle surface with brown sugar and bake 90min. Serve hot or cold.
I baste the ham with this as its baking as it tends to slide off the ham. As you do it makes a nice glaze and its delish! I use the Chinese duck sauce you buy back east, the kind thats orange looking made with apricot and plums. I cant get it here so I get mom to send it. But Im sure you could use any Chinese fruit type sauce you find or even apricot jam.

Seas Chili Verde

Brown about 4lbs of pork , cut into chunks in a large pot in some oil. Do it in batches if you have to.


You want it browned, it adds so much more to the flavor. Put any browned in a bowl or plate and finish with the rest. I sprinkle mine with salt and pepper too while doing that .


Now chop one large onion and two garlic cloves. Add to pot while browning last batch of pork.


Add two cans of Green Chili sauce (enchilada), a can of chopped chilies and some water to cover. Bring to a boil then simmer. Add a good handful of chopped cilantro. I found this great product. Its fresh herbs in a tube. I keep it on hand when I don't have fresh in the house. Cilantro I don't use as much so having it this way is awesome. I put in a good squeeze or two and stir it in then simmer till the pork is falling apart tender, maybe 2hrs. Meanwhile cook some rice. How much depends on you. For this batch I used 3c. raw then cooked it to have enough for all this.


Towards the end I like to add a bit more cilantro to brighten the flavor. I like to simmer this uncovered until the sauce thickens. When pork is tender.......serve. We like to serve this over rice topped by sour cream and guacamole. My bf likes to add cheese on top. Sometimes I make burritos from this and freeze them for lunches. You could serve with refried beans but we find this is enough for us. This made 6 hearty servings.

Roast Pork with Cider Sauce

I made this last nite. Once before I made pork roast with cider gravy and darn if I could find the recipe around here so I used this one I found online. I will tell you I thought the use of vinegar to be a bit strange. Ive seen it used in marinades but never in the actual cooking of a roast. I do know vinegar tenderizes which is why using a little bit in a marinade is a good thing but this uses alot . I had hoped it didn't taste like vinegar when it was done, while I love that I knew the rest here might not. I used my own combo of vinegar tho after scouting online thru some recipes. This called for 1c. cider vinegar. I used half cider vinegar, 1/4 balsamic vinegar and 1/4 of a special fig balsamic vinegar I bought at Dean and Delucca in Napa Valley. You must cook this on low like it says. The sugars in the vinegars will burn otherwise. I was in a hurry tho and it was a frozen roast. I did what I always do then I turn the oven way up to brown it at 475 or higher till it starts to brown then lower the temp. to 325 degrees. I do that with my beef roasts too and they come out awesome. The juice did tho start to burn a bit so I added more apple cider instead of water. I figure apple cider will be used in the gravy , it could only make it better. I was right.

This roast turned out perfect! It was tender, juicy and even awesome in sandwiches today for lunch. The gravy is nice, a touch of bitter, touch of sweet, touch of garlic but you do not taste vinegar. If I had time yesterday I would have throw some apples in the last half hr to serve on the side but I was busy doing laundry and didn't have much time to fuss.

Garlic-Studded Roast Pork with Cider Sauce
1 (4 pound) boneless pork loin roast
6 cloves garlic, each cut into 6 slivers
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons kosher salt
1 tablespoon ground black pepper
2 tablespoons dried thyme leaves
8 bay leaves
1 cup apple cider vinegar
1 cup apple cider
1 tablespoon cornstarch
2 tablespoons water

Adjust oven rack to center position and heat oven to 300 degrees F (150 degrees C).

With a small knife, pierce the top and sides of the roast in 36 places. Force garlic slices into the cuts. Rub roast with olive oil and generously sprinkle the roast all over with salt, pepper and thyme. Set roast, fat side up, on the bay leaves in a shallow roasting pan. Pour vinegar in the bottom of the pan.

As pork roasts, continue adding water as necessary to keep pan bottom moist. Cook until a meat thermometer registers between 150 and 160 degrees F (65 - 75 degrees C), about 1-1/2 to 1-3/4 hours. Leaving the roast in place, turn on broiler; cook until roast is golden brown, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove roast from oven and let rest for at least 10 minutes and up to 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, pour pan drippings into a small saucepan, add apple cider and bring to a simmer. Mix cornstarch with 2 tablespoons water; whisk into the drippings and continue to simmer until sauce is a thin consistency, about 5 minutes. Cut roast into 1/2-inch-thick slices and serve with sauce.

* I also didn't cut slits in the pork for fresh garlic this time since it was frozen, I just used garlic powder I sprinkled on the top along with the thyme.