Pan-Seared Pork Chops with Garlic and Sage

October 14, 2016 by Laura Messersmith in Cooking

Pork Chops with Garlic and Sage | Image: Laura Messersmith — **Pork Chops with Garlic and Sage** | Image: *Laura Messersmith*

Am I the only one who’s just now realizing how delicious (and frankly, super simple to make) pork chops are? They’re quickly becoming my favorite thing to make for quick weeknight suppers, special occasions, when guests are coming to dinner. In part that’s because they’re a little unexpected – not your standard chicken or obvious “fancy” steak. It’s also because when a pork chop, especially a really flavorful, bone-in cut, is prepared simply it’s greater than the sum of its parts.

Case in point, just read the ingredient list below – I’d be willing to bet that the only items not on hand are the meat and the herbs, everything else is almost certainly in the pantry already, just waiting to be called into action. But don’t be fooled – just because the recipe is brief doesn’t mean it’s ordinary or boring. In fact the results are deeply savory and satisfying – just right for a chilly October evening.

Pan Seared Pork Chops with Garlic & Sage (serves: 4)

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon olive oil
4 (6-8 ounce) thick-cut, bone-in pork chops
Kosher salt
ground black pepper
8 fresh sage leaves
2 garlic cloves, peeled, smashed
1 tablespoon unsalted butter

Instructions:

Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high. Pat the pork chops dry with paper towels and season generously on all sides with salt and pepper.

When the oil is hot and beginning to smoke, add the pork chops to the pan. Cook on one side until golden brown, about 1 minute. The turn and repeat the process on the other side, cooking for 1 minute. Continue to turn each minute for about 7–10 minutes until the chops are deep golden brown and an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part registers 135 degrees F.

Remove pan from heat and immediately add the sage, garlic, and butter. Swirl together the juices and aromatics, then tilt the skillet and spoon the pan sauce over the pork chops – bone and fat cap included – for 2-3 minutes. Transfer pork chops to a platter and rest at least 5 minutes - the internal temperature will rise to 145 degrees F.

Serve immediately with juices from the pan spooned over the top.

Re-written and lightly adapted Bon Appetit’s Your New Favorite Pork Chop by Alison Roman.

Small Kitchen Friendly?
Yes! I used a large sauté pan, tongs, medium cutting board, large spoon, chef’s knife, and paper towels.

Chicken with Forty Cloves of Garlic

April 08, 2015 by Laura Messersmith in Cooking with the Contessa

Each week I follow along with Ina Garten (aka the Barefoot Contessa) and attempt to recreate one of her dishes in my tiny New York City kitchen. The catch? This is my version of cooking school and I’m making these recipes for the first time. I’ll share both my successes and um, challenges, along the way and we’ll see if I can keep up with the Contessa!

Episode: “Dinner and a Movie”

The Set-up: Ina and her card-shark friends are switching up their plans and watching a movie instead.

The Menu: Chicken with Forty Cloves of Garlic, Couscous with Pine Nuts and Currants, Ice Cream Bombe, Blood Orange Margaritas

0:39 – Ina starts us off by saying that for weeknight entertaining she likes making recipes that look impressive, but that are really easy to make. Great, sign me up!

1:24 – Except that this recipe for an Ice Cream Bombe already involves making your own mango sorbet – frankly this is not something I’m not likely to attempt no matter what day of the week it is.

2:06 – Mango sorbet sounds great though, so I’m willing to go along for the ride!

3:18 – While the mango sorbet chills Ina starts on the Blood Orange Margaritas. Freshly squeezed blood orange juice, natch.

4:25 – “Blood orange” is pretty grisly sounding for a fruit that produces juice the color of a Lilly Pulitzer catalog.

5:43 – Gigantic pitcher of boozy cocktails? Check!

6:10 – The mango puree goes into the ice cream maker to start setting up and it looks really good. Maybe I should add “ice cream maker” to my Christmas list?

9:36 – Back to the bombe making which involves having a graduated set of bowls so that Ina can press the sorbet between two in order to shape it.

10:14 – Jack is in charge of getting the popcorn for their movie party and now I see why Ina sounded doubtful of his abilities – he can barely find it! He finally ends up with some microwave Newman’s Own, so we can all breathe a sigh of relief.

11:35 – Over to Ina again to start the Chicken with Forty Cloves of Garlic. Forty!

12:51 – Pro Tip #1: Blanch the garlic in hot water for 60 seconds to help remove the paper from the cloves. Neat trick!

13:46 – Ina sings the praises of her enormous bright orange Le Creuset pot and she is preaching to the choir. This blog is sponsored (in spirit) by my blue one.

14:13 – Ice Cream Bombe layer #2 is softened raspberry sorbet compliments of Haagen Dazs which makes me wonder why she went to the trouble of making the mango layer?

15:22 – The bombe follows the same process as before – press the sorbet between two bowls (we’re now up to three in graduated sizes) and freeze.

18:56 – Now we’re making the Couscous with Pine Nuts and Currants, which Ina says will soak up the sauce from the Chicken with Forty Cloves of Garlic. I concur. This is a solid move.

19:20 – Ina is removing the chicken from the pot so she can make the sauce and I think Ina she made a piece of chicken for every clove of garlic. So. Much. Chicken.

20:04 – Pro Tip #2: Prevent lumps by whisking a small amount of the juices with flour in a small bowl, then return to the pot to help thicken the sauce.

21:48 – I rarely see Ina impatient, but with 34 pieces of chicken left to go back into the pot with the sauce she tired of using tongs and finally just dumps them all in at once. A woman after my own heart.

22:29 – Maybe she’s impatient with the chicken because this godforsaken Ice Cream Bombe has eleventy steps even when two of the three layers are from the freezer section.

23:32 – The strawberry ice cream, in case you were wondering, is also Haagen Dazs so again I ask: why did she make the mango?

26:45 – Time to finish up the Couscous with Pine Nuts and Currants by toasting the pine nuts (aka pignolis) and adding the currants.

27:13 – Pro Tip #3: Fluff couscous with a fork (don’t stir with a spoon) to lighten it and help the grains separate.

28:29 – Here comes Jack, popcorn and poker chips in hand. Apparently he doesn’t think the French film Ina rented will be very interesting so he brought back up. Quite the cultured one, that Jack.

29:57 – Blood Orange Margaritas have been served, dinner is done. Now, the moment of truth: can Ina unmold the infamous Ice Cream Bombe? It works and she looks as surprised as anyone.

Final Thoughts:
I was kind of hard on Ina for the mango sorbet, but secretly I’m intrigued by homemade ice cream. Think of the flavors!!

Confession: I still make couscous from a box. Maybe it’s time to try on my own?

I guess Jack was right about French films, because they skipped the movie and played poker instead!

Lessons Learned:
Chicken with Forty Cloves of Garlic is a really simple, straightforward recipe but that doesn’t mean there aren’t things to learn or practice while cooking it.

Browning Chicken – Perhaps it’s odd to call paper towels a kitchen tool, but when it comes to searing meat or browning chicken they’re your secret weapon. Removing the moisture from the chicken skin helps it turn a lovely golden color that’s really tough to achieve otherwise. Definitely don’t skip the “drying” step.

Sauteing Garlic – I’ve roasted whole heads of garlic before with excellent results, but this was a new method, more like sautéing minced garlic except with a slightly lower chance of burning it immediately. The oil is already hot, so your halfway there before the garlic even hits the pan. Keep a close watch and turn the heads frequently to prevent them from burning.

Thickening Sauce – In other Ina recipes she recommends mashing flour into butter before adding to sauces. It serves a dual purpose, thickening and enriching without lumps. (ew.) This recipe calls for spooning a cup or so of the thin sauce into a measuring cup and whisking with flour before returning to the pot. It’s a pretty neat trick because, again thickened sauce and no lumps, but this time without the added butter. I’m filing this away for those rare times when more butter isn’t what I’m going for. I’ll let you know if that ever happens…

Small Kitchen Friendly?
Yes, definitely. I used my Le Creuset French oven (no surprise there) for both the garlic blanching and chicken cooking. I also used tongs, a slotted spoon, a mixing spoon, measuring cups and spoons, and a whisk. Paper towels and a large plate or platter will be really helpful too.

The Verdict:
I made Chicken with Forty Cloves of Garlic for dinner last week because the idea of chicken with all that deliciously golden garlic sounded amaaaazing. Alas, even though this recipe “turned out” the flavor was a little underwhelming. How that’s possible with all the glorious ingredients that went into the sauce I don’t know, but unfortunately the chicken was fairly bland. I’m frankly shocked that this didn’t taste better and Mike felt the same way. Sheer stubbornness might induce me to make this recipe again, maybe mashing a few cloves of garlic into the sauce? Or, cooking the garlic in the oil first and see if it permeates the chicken? If you try this and have success let me know!

Lemon Garlic Roast Chicken

November 13, 2014 by Laura Messersmith in Cooking with the Contessa

Lemon Garlic Roasted Chicken | Image: Laura Messersmith — **Lemon Garlic Roasted Chicken** | Image: *Laura Messersmith*

Episode: “Chicken Story”

The Set-up: Ina is using one chicken in three ways which sounds like a home ec trick I’d like to learn…

The Menu: Lemon and Garlic Roast Chicken, Baby Leaf Salad with Bacon, Chicken Stock, Chicken with Tabbouleh

0:44 – First things first: Lemon and Garlic Roast Chicken. Ina says she’s dressing this one up a little for the purposes of ‘company.’

1:32 – So far this looks pretty easy – sprinkling salt & pepper, a head of garlic, a quartered lemon, sprigs of herbs. Props to Ina for finding a delicate way of telling us to put all these items inside the chicken.

2:55 – Next we truss the chicken without making it sound crass. This woman is a class act.

3:17 – Oh, my goodness the secret ingredient of this chicken is bacon strips on top. Ina’s right bacon is always good for company.

4:25 – Now we’re out in the garden where Ina’s friend Greg – dinner guest of honor and internationally renowned lighting designer – is transforming the patio. We get a small hint of what’s to come, but not much. Color me intrigued…

5:56 – Next the dressing for the Baby Leaf Salad with Bacon. Ina will be using the crisped bacon from on top of the chicken in the salad. Tricksy.

6:07 – Salt for the dressing spills eliciting a small shriek of surprise from Ina – so relatable.

9:48 – The “things are afoot” music is on as the bacon is removed from the chicken and we see some of the lighting preparations in the garden.

10:51 – Ina removes the now fully cooked chicken from the oven and it does look beautifully bronzed and delicious.

11:34 – Once the chicken is removed to the platter to rest under foil Ina continues puts the pan right over a burner to make sauce (aka pan gravy.)

12:12 – Salad is dressed and topped with parmesan cheese and bacon, which is most people’s preferred method of eating greens.

13:43 – A mini-class in chicken carving is underway now and I am trying to pay close attention since chicken deconstruction is not my forte.

14:56 – Dinner is served and lighting designer Greg has made quite a romantic little scene with torches, a fire and hanging lanterns. Ina says “come have chicken with me!”

15:28 – If I weren’t 99% sure the Garten marriage is rock-solid I’d be concerned about Jeffrey.

19:17 – Dinner is over and now Ina is working on the Chicken Stock, which involves a whole parsnip. I’m fairly sure I’ve eaten parsnip, but I can’t be entirely sure.

20:25 – I love how this recipe uses the chicken carcass from dinner – so thrifty!

21:39 – Ina says she’s going to watch a movie while the chicken stock simmers, but she doesn’t say which one, so I’m going to assume it’s an embarrassing late 90s teen comedy like She’s All That or Drive Me Crazy.

22:23 – Fast forward to the next morning and Ina has reheated and drained the chicken stock, which does look really rich and flavorful.

23:40 – Now it’s on to the Chicken with Tabbouleh which uses some of the freshly made chicken stock.

24:11 – Ina has the bulgur wheat in a bowl which only needs the hot stock and a lemon vinaigrette poured over it to cook. Sort of like rice pilaf I suppose.

27:28 – Back to the tabbouleh to prepare some vegetables to include in the salad and I think I probably agree with Ina that this is a healthy dish.

28:46 – Ina reminds us that that we have to pick the mint leaves off one by one since the stems are too tough. Alright, if you insist.

29:00 – Final touches on the tabbouleh, chicken stock in storage containers, and it’s time to close the book on Chicken Story but Ina promises a sequel….

Final Thoughts:

I have got to make Lemon and Garlic Roast Chicken ASAP.

I’m really super impressed with Ina’s “Chicken Story” - if only every chef were so thoughtful about making careful use of all their ingredients.

I’m excited to hear Chicken Story II: Electric Boogaloo.

Lessons Learned:

Lemon and Garlic Roast Chicken is one of my favorite things to order in restaurants and not knowing how to make one seemed like an obvious gap in my kitchen repertoire. Why should we have to wait until we're out to dinner to have something so deliciously simple? Also, I don't know about your grocery store, but mine doesn't have its Thanksgiving stock of turkeys yet and since the techniques are the same (oven + whole bird) this seemed like good practice for the big day.

The first time out was such a success I actually made this recipe twice in one month, which is proof positive that it’s actually really easy and I have some suggestions that might help.

Point 1: Ina doesn't say to use a roasting rack but my pan came with one and I used it on my second try to see if it made a difference. I noticed that the skin on the lower part of the chicken crisped up a little more, so if that's important to you it might be worthwhile to get a rack that fits your roasting pan.

Point 2: perhaps this is obvious but keep an eye on the weight of the chicken you buy. The largest I could find was about 3 pounds - half the size of the one the recipe is based on. Which leads to Point 2.5: a meat thermometer is your friend and will help make sure the chicken is done but not over cooked and dry. Neither one is very appealing.

Point 3: With a small chicken in a large roasting pan there isn’t a lot of juice to make up the sauce and I think on try number 3 of this recipe I might put a small quantity of white wine or chicken broth in the bottom to keep any juices that do drip down from burning.

Small Kitchen Friendly?

Actually yes, assuming you have a roasting pan or metal baking dish. I also used a chef’s knife, medium cutting board, measuring spoons, as well as tongs, a meat thermometer and aluminum foil.

The Verdict:

I made Lemon and Garlic Roast Chicken for the first time when Mike's family was visiting and while normally I wouldn’t make something new for guests I knew they’d forgive me if it was a disaster. However, given the miniscule amount of leftovers remaining at the end of our meal I think my first roast chicken was an unqualified success. The flavors are so good and with a smaller, faster cooking chicken a delicious dinner could be on the table more quickly than you might think. Winner, winner chicken dinner indeed.