Pork Chops with Dijon Sauce

Yes, pork made an appearance at the dinner table last night. I haven't even gone near pork since the last incident. But Steve actually wanted them and they were on sale so I said, 'what the heck'. And I remembered the first time I cooked the pork chops. Steve made me paranoid about not cooking it enough and therefore, I overcooked the hell out of it. They weren't too good but the sauce, I remembered that the sauce was very nice. I added dried tarragon to it then and I should've done the same this time but I forgot. Oh well. There's always next time and there will be a next time.

Last time I made this dish, I used thick pork chops as the recipe calls for. 1 1/4" thick chips. This time I used thinner chops. Less than 1/2" thick. First I seasoned the chops with sugar, salt & pepper. Then I sauteed them to almost doneness in butter and olive oil. Set aside. Then for the sauce, you add onions (they called for green onions or shallots - I had neither so I used yellow onions.) Sautee. Then the liquids. White wine, chicken stock - reduce - then add heavy cream and season. At this point, the sauce should taste pretty decent. I put the pork chops back into the pan and let it simmer lightly in the sauce. Towards the end of cooking and right before serving, you swirl in fresh chopped parsley and dijon mustard. I served it with Uncle Bens rice that I'd made by sauteeing onions and celery. Added the rice and used 1/2 water and 1/2 chicken stock. I didn't serve any veggies. I was hoping that the onions and celery in the rice would suffice but I knew all too well that it would not.

The verdict. I have to pat myself on the back for not overcooking the pork chops. I mean, they were well done but not dry or hard. Well, they were a little hard. I would've liked a more tender chop, but Steve actually ate it so I know it wasn't that bad. Usually, he sets aside the severely overdone chops and I feel defeated. Pork has kicked my ass. But, but, but...I will have my day. (Oh, by the way, I'm fine with pork loins. They're easy.) The sauce didn't turn out as nicely as I wanted it. It was a little thin and I really missed the dried tarragon. But it was good. Don't get me wrong. Steve loved it so much that he had a second helping of yummy rice with more sauce on top. He also crumbled some feta cheese (the good kind made from sheep's milk) on top. There was hardly any sauce left in the pan afterwards. When I went back into the kitchen later, Steve said 'Look at the pan'. And I was all, but...and I thought it must've been Sid being naughty. Not so. It was Steve and he almost let Sid take the fall for it. He liked that sauce so much that he took a piece of bread and swirled it around the pan, soaking up the remaining sauce. Yes, I will do this dish again. Hey you. Eat Something Good!