Pork cutlets

For a Thanksgiving-weekend dinner I bought some pastured pork cutlets
(still frozen).

I normally buy pork rib chops from this producer, but they did
not have them in the quantity I needed. These cutlets, which
are from the back of the animal, are a convenient size (1/2 lb each)
and are boneless, which is good in this case; they will be "marginally
less tender" than the chops. They have a nice deep-red appearance.
I have not prepared them before.

My baseline plan is to brine them, then broil them (electric broiler)
in the same manner I would for chops. I figure I will not leave them
as rare as I would the rib chops, I otherwise will just use my
usual technique. I will pepper them beforehand and add a few drops
of olive oil after they are broiled and rested just before serving.

Should this work? Any gotchas? (My guests will not have a problem
with slightly rare, tougher-than-average, non-commercial pork but
I am hoping they will not be disastrously tough, or somehow
unappetizing at a slightly rare stage.)

Steve

On Nov 21, 2:50*pm, spop...@speedymail.org (Steve Pope) wrote:
> For a Thanksgiving-weekend dinner I bought some pastured pork cutlets
> (still frozen). *
>
> I normally buy pork rib chops from this producer, but they did
> not have them in the quantity I needed. *These cutlets, which
> are from the back of the animal, are a convenient size (1/2 lb each)
> and are boneless, which is good in this case; they will be "marginally
> less tender" than the chops. *They have a nice deep-red appearance.
> I have not prepared them before.

Guess "cutlets" means something different where you are. Here in
Nebraska pork cutlets are tenderized temple meat.

Steve Pope wrote:
> For a Thanksgiving-weekend dinner I bought some pastured pork cutlets
> (still frozen).
>

Pasteurized pork chops?

> I normally buy pork rib chops from this producer, but they did
> not have them in the quantity I needed. These cutlets, which
> are from the back of the animal, are a convenient size (1/2 lb each)
> and are boneless, which is good in this case; they will be "marginally
> less tender" than the chops. They have a nice deep-red appearance.
> I have not prepared them before.
>
> My baseline plan is to brine them, then broil them (electric broiler)
> in the same manner I would for chops. I figure I will not leave them
> as rare as I would the rib chops, I otherwise will just use my
> usual technique. I will pepper them beforehand and add a few drops
> of olive oil after they are broiled and rested just before serving.
>
> Should this work? Any gotchas? (My guests will not have a problem
> with slightly rare, tougher-than-average, non-commercial pork but
> I am hoping they will not be disastrously tough, or somehow
> unappetizing at a slightly rare stage.)
>
> Steve

I would pepper and salt and rub with crushed or mashed garlic but other
than that.

I cant imagine tough pork chops. A favorite way i like to prepare the
big boneless chops is to "chicken fry" them. Beat them down to about a
half inch thickness, dip in egg and seasoned flour and/or bread crumbs
and sautŽ in hot oil. Serve with a sauce made from pan drippings.

Here is one of the first Escoffier recipes i ever made, its now a
routine part of the menu, chez soi, at the time i wanted a dish with a
Fancy French name, that was legitimately French Haute Cuisine to serve
to some guests.

It was the easiest Escoffier recipe i found at the time. And very tasty!
It became a regular part of the menu around here after i first served it
the elderly relative, she is very fond of fruit cooked with meat.


"Cotes de Porc a la Flamande"

"Season the cutlets and color them brown quickly in butter. Arrange
them in an earthenware dish and surround with thick slices of peeled,
cored sweet apples, allowing 3 & 1/2 ounce of apples per cutlet. Finish
cooking gently together in the oven and serve as it is in the dish."

Variations on this include:

Me mum used to make a version of the Escoffier dish (unbeknownst to
her with water, stock and/or cream.

after no more than 15 minutes at the most in a wood fired oven she begin
adding various liquids to end up with pork chops & apples in a
cream sauce.

When i actually tried to pin me mum down to specifics about this recipe
there were none, if
she did not have stock she would use water, milk or cream (we had dairy
cows) roux or no roux it all depended on what she had on hand. She
often put a pinch of nutmeg in the cream sauce and when i asked her
about adding apple brandy to the cream sauce she was briefly flummoxed,
like it sounded right but took her a moment to recall, and then she
mentioned that was how her father in law, my fathers father, whose wife,
my grandmother, taught my mother the recipe, the way Grandpa liked his,
but it was home made 'apple jack' not Calvados And sometimes me mum
would use the applejack but iirc, only on "special occasions."

However Calvados works very well with this apple & pork chop dish, just
splash an appropriate amount of the apple brandy over the Cotes de Porc
a la Flamande and serve it flaming

Or...go a head and experiment with cream and the Calvados.
However, i would caution against trying to use any sort of 'apple juice'
in this recipe. Be it frozen concentrate or unfiltered, unpasturized
'raw' apple juice.

IMO you end up with a dish that while in no way 'bad' is not worth the
use of the 'juice' a better result would be obtained with plain water.
But that may very well be a very subjective opinion, not only do i know
people who make this dish with frozen concentrate but they claim to like
it! Who will admit my version with brandy is better but don't care
enough to have it any more often than i am willing to serve it

I have read of a variation of this apple & pork chop dish "a la
Liegeoise" made with juniper berries and 'flamed gin.' And have known
of people using chopped cabbage & vinegar instead of apples and brandy.

--

Mr. Joseph Littleshoes Esq.

Domine, dirige nos.
Let the games begin!
http://fredeeky.typepad.com/fredeeky.../sf_anthem.mp3

On Sat, 21 Nov 2009 20:50:27 +0000 (UTC), spope33@speedymail.org
(Steve Pope) wrote:

>For a Thanksgiving-weekend dinner I bought some pastured pork cutlets
>(still frozen).

Frozen cutlets, especially pork gaurantees the lowest grade of meat...
were it a premium grade the purveyer was proud of they would never
freeze it... and in fact that meat would not be sliced into cutlets
before they were requested... cutlets dry quickly.

>These cutlets, which are from the back of the animal, are a convenient
> size (1/2 lb each) and are boneless,

Well, cutlets are boneless, that's the nature of the beast... cutlets
can be from most any section, thinly sliced, no more than like 1/4"
thk but more typically 3/16" thk, even less. A 1/2 pound cutlet 1/4"
thk would be huge, would easily cover an entire 10" pan... typically a
cutlet would weigh like two ounces and cover an area no larger than
say an English muffin.

>My baseline plan is to brine them, then broil them (electric broiler)
>in the same manner I would for chops.
>
>Should this work? Any gotchas?

Do you have a garbage disposal in your sink...

On Nov 21, 2:50*pm, spop...@speedymail.org (Steve Pope) wrote:
> For a Thanksgiving-weekend dinner I bought some pastured pork cutlets
> (still frozen). *
>
> I normally buy pork rib chops from this producer, but they did
> not have them in the quantity I needed. *These cutlets, which
> are from the back of the animal, are a convenient size (1/2 lb each)
> and are boneless, which is good in this case; they will be "marginally
> less tender" than the chops. *They have a nice deep-red appearance.
> I have not prepared them before.
>
> My baseline plan is to brine them, then broil them (electric broiler)
> in the same manner I would for chops. *I figure I will not leave them
> as rare as I would the rib chops, I otherwise will just use my
> usual technique. *I will pepper them beforehand and add a few drops
> of olive oil after they are broiled and rested just before serving.
>
> Should this work? *Any gotchas? *(My guests will not have a problem
> with slightly rare, tougher-than-average, non-commercial pork but
> I am hoping they will not be disastrously tough, or somehow
> unappetizing at a slightly rare stage.)
>
> Steve

Google "pork cutlet". I did! Tons of recipes out there.

If I had a pet pig, I would name it Cutlet!

John Kuthe...

On Nov 21, 5:41*pm, John Kuthe <johnku...@gmail.com> wrote:
> On Nov 21, 2:50*pm, spop...@speedymail.org (Steve Pope) wrote:
>
>
>
> > For a Thanksgiving-weekend dinner I bought some pastured pork cutlets
> > (still frozen). *
>
> > I normally buy pork rib chops from this producer, but they did
> > not have them in the quantity I needed. *These cutlets, which
> > are from the back of the animal, are a convenient size (1/2 lb each)
> > and are boneless, which is good in this case; they will be "marginally
> > less tender" than the chops. *They have a nice deep-red appearance.
> > I have not prepared them before.
>
> > My baseline plan is to brine them, then broil them (electric broiler)
> > in the same manner I would for chops. *I figure I will not leave them
> > as rare as I would the rib chops, I otherwise will just use my
> > usual technique. *I will pepper them beforehand and add a few drops
> > of olive oil after they are broiled and rested just before serving.
>
> > Should this work? *Any gotchas? *(My guests will not have a problem
> > with slightly rare, tougher-than-average, non-commercial pork but
> > I am hoping they will not be disastrously tough, or somehow
> > unappetizing at a slightly rare stage.)
>
> > Steve
>
> Google "pork cutlet". I did! Tons of recipes out there.
>
> If I had a pet pig, I would name it Cutlet!

If I had a pet llama I would name it Dolly.
>
> John Kuthe...

--Bryan

brooklyn1 <gravesend10@verizon.net> wrote:

>On Sat, 21 Nov 2009 20:50:27 +0000 (UTC), spope33@speedymail.org

>(Steve Pope) wrote:

>>These cutlets, which are from the back of the animal, are a convenient
>> size (1/2 lb each) and are boneless,

>Well, cutlets are boneless, that's the nature of the beast... cutlets
>can be from most any section,

Thanks, that's useful information. These are from the back,
but not the fatty part of the back.

> thinly sliced, no more than like 1/4" thk but more typically
> 3/16" thk, even less. A 1/2 pound cutlet 1/4" thk would be
> huge, would easily cover an entire 10" pan... typically a cutlet
> would weigh like two ounces and cover an area no larger than
> say an English muffin.

These are about 5/8" thick and maybe 3" by 6" in area (The same
sellers's chops are more like 1 1/4 inch thick.)

>>My baseline plan is to brine them, then broil them (electric broiler)
>>in the same manner I would for chops.

>>Should this work? Any gotchas?

>Do you have a garbage disposal in your sink...

I'm a little more optimistic than that. I'll let you know how
it comes out.

He only slaughters about one pig per month so it's necessary
that he freeze some of it, plus I'm serving this in 8 days
so I did want frozen, or else would have to shop for the pork
late next week which is iffy.

I've had his pork chops both fresh and frozen. No radical difference
in quality. So I'm comfortable with that aspect.

Steve

Mr. Joseph Littleshoes Esq. <jpstifel@isp.com> wrote:

>I would pepper and salt and rub with crushed or mashed garlic but other
>than that.

>I cant imagine tough pork chops. A favorite way i like to prepare the
>big boneless chops is to "chicken fry" them. Beat them down to about a
> half inch thickness, dip in egg and seasoned flour and/or bread crumbs
>and sautŽ in hot oil. Serve with a sauce made from pan drippings.

I'm not up for frying them but I have been pondering whether they
need pounding.

Thanks for all the suggestions.

Steve

Steve Pope wrote:
> Mr. Joseph Littleshoes Esq. <jpstifel@isp.com> wrote:
>
>
>>I would pepper and salt and rub with crushed or mashed garlic but other
>>than that.
>
>
>>I cant imagine tough pork chops. A favorite way i like to prepare the
>>big boneless chops is to "chicken fry" them. Beat them down to about a
>> half inch thickness, dip in egg and seasoned flour and/or bread crumbs
>>and sautŽ in hot oil. Serve with a sauce made from pan drippings.
>
>
> I'm not up for frying them but I have been pondering whether they
> need pounding.
>
> Thanks for all the suggestions.
>
> Steve


Pound, make a stuffing and roll up? sliced cheese & a bread stuffing,
secured with string or tooth picks and either sautŽed to color on top of
the stove in a pan then finish in the oven. Or roast and baste with a
bit of butter? Batter dip and deep fry?

Sometimes i will pound the pork chops extra thin, sautŽ quickly, in
butter with shallots, herbs, garlic & white wine then serve with a
reduction sauce made from the pan juices. Good chance to use capers.
--

Mr. Joseph Littleshoes Esq.

Domine, dirige nos.
Let the games begin!
http://fredeeky.typepad.com/fredeeky.../sf_anthem.mp3

"Steve Pope" <spope33@speedymail.org> wrote in message
> I'm not up for frying them but I have been pondering whether they
> need pounding.

Depending on where they come from, they may be on the tough side so pounding
them out would be good. If they are from a tender region. like the ham or
loin, quick frying or broiling would be ideal. If they are a tougher meat,
like from the shoulder, I'd go for a braise of some sort.


http://www.pccnaturalmarkets.com/health/3619001/
Varieties
Pork sirloin cutlets are thin cuts of meat from the loin, much like sirloin
chops, except they are boneless.

Pork leg cutlets, cut from the middle of the leg, are economical but less
tender than the loin cutlets.

Ed Pawlowski <esp@snet.net> wrote:

>"Steve Pope" <spope33@speedymail.org> wrote in message

>> I'm not up for frying them but I have been pondering whether they
>> need pounding.

>Depending on where they come from, they may be on the tough side so pounding
>them out would be good. If they are from a tender region. like the ham or
>loin, quick frying or broiling would be ideal. If they are a tougher meat,
>like from the shoulder, I'd go for a braise of some sort.

>http://www.pccnaturalmarkets.com/health/3619001/
>Varieties

>Pork sirloin cutlets are thin cuts of meat from the loin, much like sirloin
>chops, except they are boneless.

>Pork leg cutlets, cut from the middle of the leg, are economical but less
>tender than the loin cutlets.

These are definitely from the back, which in pork terminology is called
the loin.

I'm probably going to risk doing my usual brining/broiling technique.

Thanks

Steve

Steve Pope <spope33@speedymail.org> wrote:

>For a Thanksgiving-weekend dinner I bought some pastured pork cutlets
>(still frozen).

>I normally buy pork rib chops from this producer, but they did
>not have them in the quantity I needed. These cutlets, which
>are from the back of the animal, are a convenient size (1/2 lb each)
>and are boneless, which is good in this case; they will be "marginally
>less tender" than the chops. They have a nice deep-red appearance.
>I have not prepared them before.

>My baseline plan is to brine them, then broil them (electric broiler)
>in the same manner I would for chops. I figure I will not leave them
>as rare as I would the rib chops, I otherwise will just use my
>usual technique. I will pepper them beforehand and add a few drops
>of olive oil after they are broiled and rested just before serving.

>Should this work? Any gotchas? (My guests will not have a problem
>with slightly rare, tougher-than-average, non-commercial pork but
>I am hoping they will not be disastrously tough, or somehow
>unappetizing at a slightly rare stage.)

An update: the above worked out well, in fact these cutlets were
more tender than has usually been the case for pork chops
from the same farmer.

About the only issue is that broiling the pork chops without
overcooking them means they are basically un-browned and
so are a sort of uniform grey color. But nobody seemed to
react negatively to this.

Steve

On Mon, 30 Nov 2009 18:39:23 +0000 (UTC), spope33@speedymail.org
(Steve Pope) wrote:


>About the only issue is that broiling the pork chops without
>overcooking them means they are basically un-browned and
>so are a sort of uniform grey color. But nobody seemed to
>react negatively to this.
>
>Steve

This won't help you now, and I don't know why I didn't think of it
before, but a restaurant trick might have helped here. That involves
searing them first, then finishing them in the oven to your preferred
degree of doneness.

Christine
--
http://nightstirrings.blogspot.com

Christine Dabney <artisan2@ix.netcom.com> wrote:

>On Mon, 30 Nov 2009 18:39:23 +0000 (UTC), spope33@speedymail.org

>>About the only issue is that broiling the pork chops without
>>overcooking them means they are basically un-browned and
>>so are a sort of uniform grey color. But nobody seemed to
>>react negatively to this.

>This won't help you now, and I don't know why I didn't think of it
>before, but a restaurant trick might have helped here. That involves
>searing them first, then finishing them in the oven to your preferred
>degree of doneness.

Yes; I'm actually just as happy skipping that step, if people
are not unhappy with the appearance. It does not improve the
outcome otherwise, I don't think. (But I'm sure there are different
opinions on this.)

Steve

Steve wrote on Mon, 30 Nov 2009 20:49:16 +0000 (UTC):

>> On Mon, 30 Nov 2009 18:39:23 +0000 (UTC), spope33@speedymail.org

>>> About the only issue is that broiling the pork chops without
>>> overcooking them means they are basically un-browned and
>>> so are a sort of uniform grey color. But nobody seemed to
>>> react negatively to this.

>> This won't help you now, and I don't know why I didn't think
>> of it before, but a restaurant trick might have helped here.
>> That involves searing them first, then finishing them in the
>> oven to your preferred degree of doneness.

> Yes; I'm actually just as happy skipping that step, if people
> are not unhappy with the appearance. It does not improve the
> outcome otherwise, I don't think. (But I'm sure there are
> different opinions on this.)

If you are really talking about cutlets, not chops, you might try making
them Japanese style: Tonkatsu (a Japanese word from ton=pig and
katsu=cutlet). This involves beating the cutlets flat, dipping in egg
and then Panko and deep frying. You can also cook them in the oven at
425F for 30 minutes.. The Japanese serve them on shredded cabbage with a
special (store bought) sauce, essentially a fruity steak sauce.


--

James Silverton
Potomac, Maryland

Email, with obvious alterations: not.jim.silverton.at.verizon.not

James Silverton <not.jim.silverton@verizon.net> wrote:

>If you are really talking about cutlets, not chops, you might try making
>them Japanese style: Tonkatsu (a Japanese word from ton=pig and
>katsu=cutlet). This involves beating the cutlets flat, dipping in egg
>and then Panko and deep frying. You can also cook them in the oven at
>425F for 30 minutes.. The Japanese serve them on shredded cabbage with a
>special (store bought) sauce, essentially a fruity steak sauce.

Yeah, I think most people would call the cutlets I had "chops"
(5/8" thick or so).

Can one deep-fry just to medium rare? I have zero deep-frying
experience.

Steve

Steve wrote on Mon, 30 Nov 2009 22:34:59 +0000 (UTC):

>> If you are really talking about cutlets, not chops, you might
>> try making them Japanese style: Tonkatsu (a Japanese word from
>> ton=pig and katsu=cutlet). This involves beating the cutlets
>> flat, dipping in egg and then Panko and deep frying. You can
>> also cook them in the oven at 425F for 30 minutes.. The
>> Japanese serve them on shredded cabbage with a special (store
>> bought) sauce, essentially a fruity steak sauce.

> Yeah, I think most people would call the cutlets I had "chops"
> (5/8" thick or so).

> Can one deep-fry just to medium rare? I have zero deep-frying
> experience.

I'd doubt that you would have much control over the thin deep-fried
cutlets but "oven-frying" might allow some adjustment.

--

James Silverton
Potomac, Maryland

Email, with obvious alterations: not.jim.silverton.at.verizon.not

On Nov 30, 2:34 pm, spop...@speedymail.org (Steve Pope) wrote:
> James Silverton <not.jim.silver...@verizon.net> wrote:
> >If you are really talking about cutlets, not chops, you might try making
> >them Japanese style: Tonkatsu (a Japanese word from ton=pig and
> >katsu=cutlet). This involves beating the cutlets flat, dipping in egg
> >and then Panko and deep frying. You can also cook them in the oven at
> >425F for 30 minutes.. The Japanese serve them on shredded cabbage with a
> >special (store bought) sauce, essentially a fruity steak sauce.
>
> Yeah, I think most people would call the cutlets I had "chops"
> (5/8" thick or so).
>
> Can one deep-fry just to medium rare? I have zero deep-frying
> experience.
>
If you have thin cutlets, either from slicing or from pounding, you
don't need to deep-fry. About 1/4" depth of hot oil in the pan will
do. Turn them once, fry to whatever doneness you want. That's my
version of tonkatsu, anyway, and 2 to 3 minutes on each side works.
The shorter time probably for what you want. I fake the "fruity steak
sauce" with ketchup and worcestershire sauce, mixed 50-50. -aem

aem wrote on Mon, 30 Nov 2009 15:00:37 -0800 (PST):

> On Nov 30, 2:34 pm, spop...@speedymail.org (Steve Pope) wrote:
>> James Silverton <not.jim.silver...@verizon.net> wrote:
> >> If you are really talking about cutlets, not chops, you
> >> might try making them Japanese style: Tonkatsu (a Japanese word
> >> from ton=pig and katsu=cutlet). This involves beating the
> >> cutlets flat, dipping in egg and then Panko and deep
> >> frying. You can also cook them in the oven at 425F for 30
> >> minutes.. The Japanese serve them on shredded cabbage with
> >> a special (store bought) sauce, essentially a fruity steak
> >> sauce.
>>
>> Yeah, I think most people would call the cutlets I had
>> "chops" (5/8" thick or so).
>>
>> Can one deep-fry just to medium rare? I have zero
>> deep-frying experience.
>>

> I fake the "fruity steak
>sauce" with ketchup and worcestershire sauce, mixed 50-50.

Here's a recipe:


Tonkatsu Sauce

1/2 cup Worcestershire sauce

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1/4 cup soy sauce

1/4 cup tomato ketchup

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

1/4 teaspoon ground allspice



In a small saucepan, whisk together the Worcestershire, sugar, soy sauce
and ketchup.

Bring to a simmer over medium low heat.

Reduce the heat to gentle simmer and whisk often until reduced to 1 cup,
about 10 minutes.

Whisk in mustard and allspice.

Cool to room temperature.

The sauce will keep for 1 week in the refrigerator.



However, Chinese "Bulldog" Sauce works pretty well too!

--

James Silverton
Potomac, Maryland

Email, with obvious alterations: not.jim.silverton.at.verizon.not