Pork Chops with Boozy Jam Pan Sauce

This is a quick, simple, adaptable dish that I make it a lot when I get busy. You brown some pork chops and then make a pan sauce with a bit of booze,a bit of meat stock, some sort of yummy fruit jam and some salt and pepper. You can add other stuff like a couple dry chili peppers, a clove of garlic, a sprig of thyme or a shot of Worcestershire or HP sauce, but I think that it is best to limit yourself to one or two of these extra flavours.

I collect jars of unusual jams to have on hand for this purpose. I get my mum to send me lavender lilikoi or lavender poha berry jam from the lavender farm near her house on Maui. Plum Chutney or Pickled Plums would be great! Fancy jam is not crucial though….my favourite supermarket variety jam is apricot. In truth booze isn’t totally crucial either, but if you have it on hand it is very tasty!

Here are some pan sauce combinations that I have been pleased with…

Tart Plum Marmalade, cognac, dry arbol chili pepper
Apricot Jam and HP Sauce (recommended to me by my Aunt Mona)
Lilikoi Lavender jam and grand marnier
Cherry preserves, Port, thyme
Apple butter, brandy, sage
Seville orange marmelade, whiskey, cloves and smoked salt
Rhubarb chutney and grand marnier

PORK CHOPS WITH BOOZY JAM PAN SAUCE

a bit of grease for the skillet
2 one inch thick, bone in pork chops
salt
black pepper
1/4 cup tasty booze
1/4 cup chicken stock
1/4 cup of jam or fruit preserves
a couple of dry chilies, a clove of garlic, a sprig of thyme or a shot of Worcestershire or HP sauce…or some other yummy flavour that you think of…

Start a heavy bottomed skillet heating on high with a bit of grease.
Rinse you chops and pat them totally dry with paper towels. Season them generously on both sides with salt and pepper.
When the skillet is very hot add the pork chops. Press them down so that they make full contact with the hot pan.
When they are brown on the first side (about 3 minutes) flip them over and brown them on the second side (about 3 minutes).
Lower the heat and cover the pan to let them finish cooking (about 3 minutes).
When they are done, remove the chops to a plate and set aside. Turn the heat up on the pan with the juices from the chops. As I’ve mentioned before I never skim the fat of off pan sauce… anything for that matter. But if you do not like fat you could skim it off before heating up the juices.
When it is at full heat add the booze and stir rapidly, scraping the bottom of the pan to get any browned bits.
When the sauce is looking a uniform brown color (after a minute or two of stirring) add the chicken stock, jam and any other flavouring. Stir rapidly to combine and allow the sauce to cook until it is thickened.
Remove from the heat and adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper and serve it up!

Pork chops are good with a green vegetable and some potatoes on the side to sop up the sauce. Here are some other fancier side dishes for pork chops if you are in the mood…