Pork Chops & Onions, Peppers, Mushrooms

How to Cook Everything (HTCE) by Mark Bittman, is the latest cookbook added to the Frog & PenguINN’s collection. Bittman formerly wrote The Minimalist, a weekly food column which ran in the New York Times from Sept 1997 to Jan 2011.  This volume is one of over 10 books he’s authored on food and cooking.

This book was FREE – if you read a previous post on book bargains, you  know how I love to find great book deals. This book came from a recent annual book swap, which a friend hosts annually in late February. The only requirements are to bring a covered dish and 5 books AND to leave with 5 books and your dish. It’s a fun afternoon!

Pork Chops with Onions, Peppers and Mushrooms

This recipe was slightly modified from one in HTCE, which didn’t include mushrooms. It was served with roasted veggies and we had leftovers for a 2^nd meal.

• 4 center-cut loin pork chops, trimmed of excess fat
• Salt & fresh ground pepper
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• ½ C white wine
• 1 tsp minced garlic OR 2 tbsp scallion
• 2 C thinly sliced onion circles
• 2 C stemmed, sliced, pepper (any color but green)
• 1C sliced mushrooms
• ½ C chicken, beef, vegetable stock OR water
• 1 tbsp lemon juice or wine vinegar

1. Sprinkle pork chops with salt and pepper. Add 2 tablespoons of olive oil and place skillet over medium-high heat for 2-3 minutes; Add chops and turn heat to high. Brown on both sides; moving to brown all over.
2. Reduce heat to medium. Add wine and garlic and cook, turning chops once or twice until wine has evaporated. Add ½ cup of stock or water and turn heat to low and cover. Undercook slightly; turning chops once or twice until they are tender, but not dry. Remove from pan, preheat oven to warm and put chops in warm oven.
3. Add a bit more olive oil to pan, stir in onions, peppers, and mushrooms. Cook until vegetables start to brown.
4. Cover pan and cook for 5 minutes over medium heat. Remove cover and cook, stirring until the vegetables are softened (about 5 more minutes). Moisten with ½ cup stock and cook until most of it is absorbed. Stir in 1 tablespoon of lemon juice or white vinegar, taste and adjust seasonings.
5. Remove chops from oven, add to pan and cover with vegetables; re-cover and cook on low for 5 minutes.

Serves 4 or 2 with leftovers for 2^nd meal.

We served it with some roasted vegetables of potatoes, carrots, and beets – leftovers from a weekend dinner that Grenville cooked.