Orange Soy Baby Back Ribs

My mom makes a yummy Asian-soy baby back rib.  I actually prefer it to barbecue-flavored ribs.  Not that I would ever turn down barbecue-flavored ribs, mind you.  And coming from Memphis, TN, I do love me some barbecue-flavored ribs.  But there's something so deliciously scrumptious about soy ribs.  As in soy sauce, not ribs made out of tofu.  Please.

My mom's ribs, though they have great flavor, always come out dry.  Almost jerky-like.  She's one of those people who likes to cook her meat to death.  Her ribs are dry.  Her chicken is dry.  Her steaks are well-done, which to me is inedible.  So I thought I'd try adapting her soy ribs to my liking - I boiled them first, then finished them off in the oven.  They are fall-off-the-bone tender with nice outside color.

I had a big, juicy navel orange on my counter today begging to be eaten, so I incorporated it into the ribs.  Delish!

Orange Soy Baby Back Ribs

 

Ingredients:

• 2 to 2.5 lb. pork baby back ribs
• 1 cup soy sauce, divided
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1.5 teaspoons cumin powder, divided
• water
• zest and juice of 1 large sweet navel orange, about 1/3 cup
• Tastefully Simple Garlic Garlic
• 1 tablespoon honey (more if the orange is tart)

Directions:

• Place the ribs in a large pot.  Add 3/4 cup soy sauce, minced garlic and 1 teaspoon cumin powder.  Add enough water to cover the ribs.  Bring pot to a boil, then reduce to simmer.  Cover the pot leaving a crack open and continue simmering until the ribs are tender, about 2 hours.  When they are done, transfer the ribs to a plate and discard the cooking water.
•  Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees F.  Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil and spray with cooking spray.
• In a small sauce pan, whisk together the remaining 1/4 cup soy sauce, 1/2 teaspoon cumin powder, the orange juice and orange zest, a few dashes of TSGG, and honey.  Bring to a boil and cook, stirring frequently, until the sauce is reduced by a third, about 10 minutes.
• Place the ribs in a single layer onto the baking sheet.  Brush the orange soy sauce liberally over each rib and bake for 10 minutes until they get a nice brown crust.  Flip the ribs over, brush with more orange soy sauce and bake for another 10 minutes.

Enjoy!  We sure did.  :-D

Pork Tenderloin Stuffed with Spinach and Mozzarella

Using up what's in the fridge again - part of a clamshell of baby spinach leaves, and some shredded mozzarella that expires tomorrow.

Pork Tenderloin Stuffed with Spinach and Mozzarella


Ingredients:

• 2 1-lb. pork tenderloins, all visible fat removed
• a large handful of baby spinach leaves
• about 1/3 cup of shredded part-skim mozzarella
• Tastefully Simple Seasoned Salt
• Tastefully Simple Garlic Garlic
• olive oil

Directions:

• Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees F.  Spray a baking sheet with olive oil.
• On a cutting board, slice each tenderloin length-wise (like you're unrolling a cinnamon bun) a few times until you get an open rectangle (okay, more of an oval) of meat that is about 1/2-inch thick.  
• Arrange half of the spinach on top of one of the open tenderloins.  Then arrange half of the mozzarella on top of the spinach.  Roll the stuffed tenderloin up tightly and lay it seam side down onto the baking sheet.  Repeat with the second tenderloin.
• Sprinkle each stuffed tenderloin with TSSS and TSGG.  Drizzle with olive oil and massage.
• Roast in pre-heated oven for about 40 minutes until the internal temperature reaches 145 degrees F.  Remove from oven and let sit for 5 minutes before slicing on a diagonal.

Pork Tenderloin Stuffed with Orange

Huge, sweet navel oranges are still in season.  So yummy!

Pork Tenderloin stuffed with Orange

Ingredients:

• a 1-lb. pork tenderloin all visible fat removed
• olive oil
• Tastefully Simple Seasoned Salt
• dried rosemary
• dried basil
• 1 large navel orange, peeled and segmented
• Tastefully Simple Garlic Garlic

Directions:

• Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees F.  Spray a baking sheet with olive oil.
• On a cutting board, slice the tenderloin length-wise (like you're unrolling a cinnamon bun) a few times until you get an open rectangle of meat that is about 1/2-inch thick.  Drizzle some olive oil on it, sprinkle some TSSS, rosemary and basil, and give everything a good rub.
• Arrange the orange segments (make sure to remove all membranes, which become a little bitter after being cooked) in a single layer on top of the open seasoned tenderloin. Roll the stuffed tenderloin up and lay it seam side down onto the baking sheet.
• Drizzle the rolled stuffed tenderloin with olive oil and sprinkle with TSGG and TSSS.
• Roast in pre-heated oven for about 40 minutes until the internal temperature reaches 145 degrees F.  Remove from oven and let sit for 5 minutes before slicing on a diagonal.

Pork Tenderloin Stuffed with Spinach and Prosciutto

Using up what's in the fridge.

Pork Tenderloin Stuffed with Spinach and Prosciutto


Ingredients:

• 2 1-lb. pork tenderloins, all visible fat removed
• a large handful of big spinach leaves
• 3 oz. thinly-sliced prosciutto
• Tastefully Simple Seasoned Salt
• Tastefully Simple Garlic Garlic
• olive oil

Directions:

• Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees F.  Spray a baking sheet with olive oil.
• On a cutting board, slice each tenderloin length-wise (like you're unrolling a cinnamon bun) a few times until you get an open rectangle of meat that is about 1/2-inch thick.  
• Arrange half of the spinach in a double-layer on top of the open tenderloin.  Then arrange half of the sliced prosciutto in a single layer on top of the spinach.  Roll the stuffed tenderloin up and lay it seam side down onto the baking sheet.  Repeat with the second tenderloin.
• Sprinkle each stuffed tenderloin with TSSS and TSGG.  Drizzle with olive oil and massage.
• Roast in pre-heated oven for about 40 minutes until the internal temperature reaches 145 degrees F.  Remove from oven and let sit for 5 minutes before slicing on a diagonal.

Applesauce Stuffed Pork Tenderloin

I saw a beautiful pork tenderloin on sale at Sprouts today and just had to have it.  I didn't want to do the same old same old, so I thought I'd stuff it.  With applesauce.  And raisins.  It was a little messier than I expected, mostly due to the applesauce oozing out while I was trying to roll up the pork.  But it was yummy.  Next time when I have more time, I'll cook up some sliced apple pieces until tender and roll the pork with those instead of the applesauce.

If you want to be completely SBD-compliant, use your own home-made applesauce (no sugar added) and replace the raisins with diced dried apricots.

Applesauce Stuffed Pork Tenderloin



Ingredients:

• 1.5 pound pork tenderloin, all visible fat removed
• 1/4-ish cup applesauce
• 2 tablespoon-ish raisins
• Tastefully Simple Seasoned Salt
• Tastefully Simple Garlic Garlic
• olive oil

Directions:

• Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees F.  Spray a baking sheet with oil.
• On a cutting board, slice the pork tenderloin length-wise (like you're unrolling a cinnamon bun) a few times until you get an open rectangle of meat that is about 1/2-inch thick.  Pour the sauce and sprinkle the raisins on the pork.  Roll it back up.
• Place pork seam-side down onto the baking sheet.  Sprinkle the top and sides with TSSS and TSOO.  Drizzle with olive oil and rub it into the meat.
• Roast in pre-heated oven for 45 minutes - 1 hour.  Remove from oven and let stand for 5 minutes before slicing.  Spoon any "escaped" sauce from the baking sheet onto the sliced pork.

Saucy Pork Chops

We spent the day apple picking in Oak Glen.  It was a lot of fun for the toddler.  I was highly disappointed this year, though.  The crops were sparse, and 90% of the apples were infested with worms.  Even the farm folks admitted that the number of damaged apples was higher than usual.  It took us almost 2 hours to find enough non-wormed apples to fill our 2 small bags.  Hopefully next year will be better.

By the time we got home, it was after 6pm and we were STARVING.  I had some pork chops and a package of crimini mushrooms in the fridge.  I wanted something substantial and comforting, so I thought I'd experiment with some sort of gravy for the chops, to be served over brown rice that would sop up all the saucy goodness.  It was so good.

Saucy Pork Chops

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 4 medium boneless pork chops (1.5 - 2 pounds), all visible fat removed
• salt and pepper
• 1 medium onion, sliced
• 1 8oz. package of crimini mushrooms, roughly chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 tablespoons whole wheat flour
• 2 cups chicken broth

Directions:

• Heat olive oil in a heavy skillet.  Season the pork chops on both sides with salt and pepper.  Sear the chops for a few minutes on each side.  Transfer the chops to a plate and set aside.
• Add the sliced onion and chopped mushrooms to the skillet and stir, scraping up all the brown bits.  Sauté for 5 - 7 minutes on medium heat until the onions and mushrooms are soft.  Add the minced garlic and stir for another minute.
• Sprinkle the mixture with whole wheat flour and continue to stir for another minute.  Add in the chicken broth. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low.  
• Transfer the seared pork chops back to the skillet and nestle them into the sauce.  Cover and simmer on medium-low for 10 minutes, until the chops are cooked through.  Check the flavor of the sauce and add salt and pepper if necessary.
• Serve over brown rice or whole wheat noodles.

Pork Chops with Mushroom Cream Sauce

The original recipe calls for chicken breasts, but I happened to have pork chops today.  Also, this recipe is versatile in that you can use whatever mushrooms you have on hand.  The original recipe includes shiitakes, today I used trumpets, and I'm guessing this would even be good with plain ol' white button shrooms.  I added a little bit of flour to thicken it up and make it more "creamy," especially since I used skim milk instead of cream.

Pork Chops with Mushroom Cream Sauce
Adapted from this recipe.

Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 4 medium boneless pork chops, all visible fat removed
• Tastefully Simple Seasoned Salt
• 1 medium shallot, minced
• 2 10-oz. packages of trumpet shrooms, sliced (thick or thin depending on your preference)
• Tastefully Simple Onion Onion
• 1 teaspoon whole wheat flour
• 1 cup skim milk

Directions:

• Heat a pan with olive oil.  Season both sides of pork chops with TSSS.  Cook chops in skillet, about 5 minutes on each side, or until internal temperature is 145 degrees F.  Transfer chops to a plate and tent with aluminum foil to keep warm.
• Add shallots and shrooms to the pan and season to taste with TSOO and more TSSS.  Sauté for about 5-7 minutes until soft.
• Sprinkle flour over the shrooms and stir to incorporate.
• Add the milk and scrape up any brown bits from the pan.  Bring to a boil, then lower the heat.  Simmer for a minute or two until sauce thickens.
• Pour mushroom sauce over the pork chops and serve.

Pork Chops with Roasted Apple and Fennel

I'm loving my weekly FFTY organic CSA boxes because I'm receiving items I've never bought before and learning how to cook with them.  I recently got a beautiful fennel bulb.  I know what fennel is and have seen it in stores and on food shows, but I've never cooked with it before.  I love roasted veggies in general, so when I came across this recipe I thought it would be a good way to introduce myself to cooking fennel.  It was indeed very yummy.

Pork Chops with Roasted Apple and Fennel
Adapted from this recipe.

Ingredients:

• 2 Braeburn apples, cut into medium slices
• 1 bulb fennel, trimmed, cored and cut into medium slices
• 1 red onion, cut into medium slices
• olive oil
• Tastefully Simple Seasoned Salt
• 4 medium pork chops (approx. 1.5 pounds), all visible fat removed
• 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
• chopped fennel fronds for garnish

Directions:

• Pre-heat oven to 425 degrees F.
• Toss apples, fennel and onion in a tablespoon of olive oil and a few dashes of TSSS.  Spread onto a baking sheet and bake in preheated oven for 20 - 25 minutes until tender.
• In the meantime, sprinkle TSSS over both sides of pork chops.
• Sear pork chops on one side in a couple tablespoons olive oil in an oven-proof skillet.  Turn the chops over to the other side, then place skillet in oven.  Roast until barely pink inside, about 12 - 15 minutes (internal pork temperature should read 145 degrees F).
• Transfer pork to a cutting board and let rest for 5 minutes.
• While pork is resting, immediately deglaze the skillet with apple cider vinegar.  Add the roasted veggies into the skillet and toss.
• Plate the pork chops and top with the veggie mix.  Garnish with some chopped fennel fronds if desired.

Deglazing the pan at the end with apple cider vinegar is KEY to the sauce.  SO GOOD!

Braised Pork Chops with Apples

A few years ago I was walking through Home Depot's garden center when I saw a tiny grafted ultra-dwarf Fuji apple twig in a pot.  "Grows to 6' tall" it said on the tag, "Can be kept smaller if in a pot."  Hmmm....  I love Fuji apples.  And I have a patio.  So I bought it.

The first year we got no fruit, which was as expected.  Last year we got 4 tiny, sour but flavorful apples.  This year, well, check out the picture.  The tree is about 5' tall and bore us 12 large, juicy, crunchy, uber-sweet apples!  We'd already eaten 1/2 of them by the time I got around to taking this photo.

They are awesome eaten freshly-picked off the tree.  But then I wondered, what else could I do with them?  Not enough for a pie.  And I have some pork chops in the fridge.  So why not braised pork chops with apples?  Genius!


Braised Pork Chops with Apples

Ingredients:

• 4 boneless pork chops, all visible fat removed
• Tastefully Simple Seasoned Salt
• olive oil
• 3/4 cup chicken broth 
• 1 large fresh-from-the-patio-tree Fuji apple, peeled, cored and thinly sliced
• Tastefully Simple Onion Onion
• Dijon mustard

Directions:

• Season both sides of the pork chops with TSSS.
• In a large pan with a tablespoon of olive oil, sear the chops on both sides on medium-high heat.  Transfer the chops to a plate and set aside.
• Reduce heat to medium and deglaze the pan with the chicken broth.  Add in the apple slices and a couple shakes of TSOO.  Cover and cook for a few minutes until the apples are tender.  Add a large dollop of Dijon mustard and stir until fully incorporated.
• Move the cooked apples to the sides of the pan and return the pork chops to the pan.
• Cover and braise for 10 minutes. 
• Remove cover, flip the chops and continue braising for an additional 5-10 minutes.
• Serve immediately.

I think next time I'll use 2 apples instead of 1, they were so yummy! Also, if you like a little sweeter flavor and are not tied to South Beach, you can use apple cider or juice in place of the chicken broth.

Roasted Pork Tenderloin

I normally would make this with a few cloves of freshly-crushed garlic, but I don't have any on hand at the moment, so I just used garlic powder (I'm also out of Tastefully Simple Garlic Garlic - gasp!). Ghetto, I know. My apologies. :-)

Roasted Pork Tenderloin

Ingredients:

• 2-3 cloves of fresh garlic, crushed (I used 1 tablespoon of garlic powder today)
• 2-3 teaspoons of dried rosemary
• a few dashes of Tastefully Simple Seasoned Salt
• a couple tablespoons of olive oil
• 1.5 lb pork tenderloin, all visible fat removed

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
• In a small bowl, combine the garlic, rosemary, seasoned salt and olive oil so it forms a paste.
• Rub the mixture all over the pork.
• Place pork on a sheet pan and roast until a meat thermometer registers 155 degree F (45 minutes to 1 hour).
• Let the pork rest for 15 minutes before slicing.

I like to add veggies to the pan about 20 minutes before the end of cooking time, so they can roast alongside the pork and soak up any of the yummy juices.  Today's green of choice: Brussels sprouts.  YUM!

Tomato Braised Pork Chops with Couscous

I have nothing witty to say today, sorry.  Todd came home late from work, and I need to go study for an OB/GYN test in the morning.  :-)

Tomato Braised Pork Chops with Couscous
I made this one up myself based on what I had in the pantry.

Ingredients:

• Tastefully Simple Seasoned Salt
• 4 medium pork chops, all visible fat removed
• extra virgin olive oil 
• 1 can (15 oz.) diced tomatoes
• 1 can (15 oz.) great northern beans, drained (I would have used garbanzo beans but didn't have any on hand)
• 1 can (15 oz.) artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
• a few pinches dried rosemary
• a few pinches dried thyme
• 1 cup whole wheat couscous, uncooked

Directions:

• Sprinkle both sides of pork chops with the Seasoned Salt.
• In a large skillet on high heat, drizzle a couple tablespoons of olive oil and sear the pork chops on both sides.  Turn the heat down to medium-low.
• Add the diced tomatoes, beans, artichokes, rosemary and thyme.  Season with some more salt if needed.
• Cover the skillet and let braise for 45 minutes to an hour.
• Remove the pork chops onto a cutting board and dice into bite-size pieces.
• Meanwhile, add 1 cup whole wheat couscous to the skillet and mix to incorporate it into the tomato mixture.
• Return the diced pork to the skillet, cover and turn off the heat.  Let sit for about 10 minutes until the couscous is nice and fluffy and has absorbed most of the sauce.

If you want, you could keep the pork chops whole and serve them atop the bed of couscous.  I like to dice them up because it's easier to box up for lunch the next day.