Asian Rice-Stuffed Pork Chop with Hot Mustard Pan Gravy
Brine
¾ cup apple cider vinegar
1 cup water
1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger
3 tablespoons brown sugar
2 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce
2 teaspoons ground mustard
6 whole cloves
2 cups ice
⅓ cup sea salt
2 bone-in pork chops
1 teaspoon sesame oil
¼ medium red onion, sliced thinly
¾ cup sliced white mushrooms
1 tablespoon butter
¼ cup chicken broth
Stuffing
1 tablespoon chia seeds
¼ cup water
1 teaspoon Chinese five-spice powder
2 teaspoons sesame oil
2 tablespoons butter
¼ cup diced red onion
½ cup diced red pepper
⅓ cup thinly sliced snow peas
⅓ cup diced shiitake mushrooms
1½ cups cold cooked sushi rice
3 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce
Hot Mustard Pan Gravy
½ cup chicken broth
1½ teaspoons Chinese-style hot mustard
3 tablespoons mascarpone cheese
2 teaspoons low sodium soy sauce
For the brine: Place the vinegar, water, ginger, brown sugar, soy sauce and mustard into a 1-quart sauce pan. Bring to a hard boil for a minute, stirring frequently. Take off heat and add ice. Place pork chops into a plastic or glass bowl. Add sea salt over pork chops. Pour cooled brine over chops. Cover and refrigerate for 40 minutes. Rinse pork chops well and pat dry. Put aside to be stuffed. Discard brine.
For the stuffing: In a small bowl, combine chia seeds and water. Set aside for 15 minutes.
Heat frying pan and add Five Spice power. Let spice heat for 30 seconds and then add oil and butter. Add onion and peppers and cook for 2 minutes; add mushrooms and peas. Cook additional 2-3 minutes until all vegetables slightly soft. Add rice, soy sauce, and chia mixture. Mix well and set aside.
To stuff the pork chops: Heat oven to 400 degrees.
Slice pork chops in half creating a pocket all the way to the bone. Using half of the rice mixture, stuff each pork chop and reserve balance of stuffing for plating.
Heat a large, oven-safe frying pan on stove. Add sesame oil to the hot pan. Place stuffed pork chops in pan to create a sear on both sides, about 2 minutes per side. Remove chops from pan and set aside and keep warm.
To the pan, add the butter. Once melted, saute the onion and mushrooms for about 3-4 minutes until soft. Put the pork chops back into pan on top of vegetables; add the chicken broth. Place pan in oven and bake 25 minutes or until pork is cooked to 150 degrees at thickest point. Remove pork chops and vegetables from the pan and let rest for 15 minutes. Set aside remaining juices for gravy.
For the gravy: Add chicken broth to the pan drippings and bring to a boil. Stir constantly for a minute. Stir in hot mustard and let cook another minute. Stir in 3 tablespoons mascarpone cheese and soy sauce. Let cook another 2 minutes, stirring.
Pour gravy onto plate and place pork chop on top. Add some of the reserved stuffing to the plate to look as if falling out of the pork chop. Spoon the red onion and mushrooms onto the chop and garnish with snow pea shoots.
Serves two.
Chris Crabtree, Winfield