One of the common combinations in Trentino-Alto Adige is mixing meat with fruit. Chicken with juniper berries, pork with apples, lamb with blueberries. It's an interesting pairing, and to be honest, I was a little scared of what the result would be. I love savory foods, and I couldn't seem to wrap my head around mixing meat with something that I drool over as a pie filling. But, I trusted the Italian cooking ability (when has it ever led me astray before?) and chose to make pork with blueberry sauce. Living in Maine, great blueberries are easy to come by at this time of year. The result was great. Even while eating it, I was trying to comprehend how these tastes were working together and couldn't figure it out. I guess it's time to just let it go, accept that this dish was great, and enjoy it!
Pork Chops with Blueberry Sauce
Adapted from Rock Recipes
-Makes 4 servings-
Ingredients:
4 pork chops
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons garlic
1/2 cup chicken stock
1/2 tsp thyme
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 cup blueberries
1 tablespoon brown sugar
3 tablespoons lemon juice
3 tablespoons butter
Process:
- Heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium to medium high heat. Cook the pork chops about 4-5 minutes on each side until golden brown. If using thicker pork chops, finish off in the oven at 350 degrees for 5-8 minutes.
- Saute the garlic in the skillet for about 3-4 minutes. Add the blueberries, balsamic vinegar, chicken stock, thyme, and brown sugar. Simmer over medium heat to reduce the volume by half.
- Add the lemon juice and butter. Simmer another minute to let the sauce thicken. Spoon over the pork chops and serve!
Ryan's rating of Pork Chops with Blueberry Sauce - 5. I'm beginning to see a pattern...I think Ryan is biased towards all things pork...
These look great. I'm always doing the same thing with pork, so I think its time to change it up. I definitely gonna try this!
This sounds totally ignorant, but I never realized Italian food had such variety. I'm loving all of these different dishes!
Posted by: Shannon | 09/16/2009 at 06:41 PM
It's not ignorant at all! Italian cuisine is just a lot more extensive than what you get at most American-Italian restaurants. Glad you're finding some recipes that you like! Make sure you let me know how they go when you try them.
Posted by: Sue | 09/17/2009 at 12:46 PM