Pork Chops with Hot Cherry Pepper Pan Sauce

Pork Chops with Hot Cherry Pepper Pan Sauce

Serves 2-4

As an Italian American, I grew up with a pantry full of jarred veggies, marinated, grilled, and pickled. This recipe is an homage to one of my favorites, hot cherry peppers. These days, I usually only see them sitting on olive bars stuffed with mozzarella and prosciutto or layered onto good Italian sandwiches. But I’m using them to brighten up a classic pan sauce and balance out some savory fennel-brined pork chops. Serve with crusty sourdough or crispy potatoes to soak up all of the extra sauce.

For the Salt Brine:

2 Tbsp. Diamond Krystal Salt

1 Tsp. Whole Black Pepper

1 Tsp. Whole Fennel Seeds

1 Tsp. White Sugar

For The Pan Sauce:

2 Tbsp. Canola Oil

2 Bone-in Pork Chops

2 Tbsp. Olive Oil

1 Thinly Sliced Spanish Onion

3 Thinly Sliced Cloves of Garlic

½ Cup White Wine

½ Cup Chicken Broth

1 Cup Seeded and Torn Cherry Peppers

2 Tbsp. Cherry Pepper Vinegar From the Cherry Pepper Jar

3 Tbsp Butter

1 Lemon, Zest and Juice

2 Tbsp. Roughly Chopped Parsley

In the bowl of a spice grinder or high-powered blender, combine salt, black pepper, fennel seeds, and sugar. Grind until uniform in texture. Season the pork chops with the salt brine and allow to sit in the refrigerator uncovered for at least 2 hours and a max of 6.

Preheat oven to 350F. Heat a heavy bottom skillet or cast-iron pan over high heat, add 2 tablespoons of neutral oil. Pat pork chops dry with a paper towel and sear in the hot skillet undisturbed for about 2-4 minutes until both chops have a dark caramel-colored sear. Flip the pork chops and cook for another 30 seconds. Transfer to an oven-safe baking dish and bake the pork chops until they reach an internal temperature of 140F about 5-10 minutes.

In the meantime, add the olive oil to the skillet and sauté onions and garlic until the onions start to become translucent. Season with Salt. Add the white wine and simmer for about 3-5 minutes. When the wine is cooked down, add the chicken broth to the pan and bring back to a simmer. Melt the butter into the sauce while stirring constantly. Season with salt and pepper. Finally, add the cherry peppers, pepper vinegar, lemon zest, juice, and roughly chopped parsley.

Allow pork chops to rest for 10 minutes then slice them and pour the pan sauce over. Garnish again with parsley and serve.