Milk-Braised Pork

A dear friend first passed this treasure of a recipe along to me, one of the only good things to come out of a particularly bad boyfriend on her part. I have since discovered that there are as many variations on this recipe as there are food bloggers. People attack this different ways, sometimes adding herbs, garlic, onions, and more.


For our tastes, though, you truly can't beat the sauce that the very few ingredients makes--as my more poetic friend said, "If golden brown was a taste, this would be it."
I've given the same treatment to pork chops, but a nice pork tenderloin really works best in this situation. You can do two tenderloins in the same pan, if you have a larger crowd to feed.

Milk-Braised Pork
serves 2-3

1 Tbsp butter
olive oil
sea salt
freshly ground pepper
1 medium pork tenderloin
.5 gallon of 2% milk*

*Traditionally this is made with whole milk, but I have to be able to look at myself in the mirror every day, and 2% works just fine.

Sprinkle tenderloin generously with salt and pepper. Heat butter and a drizzle of olive oil in a heavy saute pan with a lid. In the past I have always used my trusty All-Clad pan, but this time I used my new Calphalon non-stick skillet and the clean-up was so, SO much easier.


Brown the pork very well on all sides in the hot oil. Once finished browning, add milk to the pan until nearly covering the meat, reduce heat to a low simmer. Cover and simmer for 30 minutes.
Remove lid, raise heat to medium, until milk starts to boil around the meat. This is where vigilance is important--boil the milk down until it resembles soft, light golden curds, turning the tenderloin over occasionally. This can take over half and hour, I usually take a chair and a book into the kitchen, because you do NOT want to scorch the milk.


Once the milk has boiled down, add more milk to almost cover the pork, and cook down again. At this point it should be smelling incredibly good and the pork should be quite tender. Once the milk has boiled down to a thick, golden brown sauce, remove meat. Slice thinly and generously spoon the sauce over the top. This is a rich dish, best paired with lightly steamed vegetables to cut some of the heaviness.
This is one of the top 5 things Chris requests again and again, and aside from the time (it should take upwards of two hours total or you're cooking with too much heat), it is incredibly simple.

Jerk Pork Tenderloin with Warm Pineapple Chutney

An easy dinner tonight, because it references one of my staples, Jerk Chicken. I simply cut the jerk seasoning rub in half and used it to coat a pork tenderloin. The result? Succulent, spiced pork that I paired with a warm pineapple chutney, and it was incredible--adding some tang and sweetness to the rich spices. Just the thing for this unseasonably cold evening--but I think a cold pineapple salsa will be just the thing come summer.


Jerk Pork Tenderloin with Warm Pineapple Chutney
serves 3-4

for the warm pineapple chutney:

2 cups finely chopped fresh pineapple
.5 cup finely chopped onion
1 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
1-2 Tbsp dark brown sugar (adjust to your liking)
fat pinch salt
1 Tbsp olive oil


Heat oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Saute for about 5 minutes, until just beginning to brown. Add remaining ingredients, stir well to combine. Turn heat down to medium-low, cover, and simmer for 15 minutes. Uncover and simmer for 3-5 minutes more, until mixture thickens up a bit.


for the pork:

1 Tbsp paprika
.75 Tbsp garlic powder
.75 tsp ground allspice
.5 tsp ground nutmeg
.25 tsp cayenne pepper (more or less, depending on preferred spice level)
1 tsp kosher salt
pinch tsp freshly ground pepper
1 Tbsp olive oil
Juice of quarter a lime
1 Tbsp molasses
pork tenderloin

Mix all of the ingredients (except for the pork), in a small bowl. Once well combined, slather the pork tenderloin on all sides and place in a greased baking dish. Let marinate for a couple of hours in the refrigerator.


Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Roast pork for 25-30 minutes, until a thermometer registers the internal temperature at 160 degrees (still rosy pink in the center). Let the pork stand for 10 minutes before slicing. Serve with warm pineapple chutney on top, Thyme Rice Pilaf, and steamed broccoli.

Sticky Country Style Ribs

Like last night’s offering, this is another recipe I wrote about without pictures. After tonight, it’s back to recipes none of you have read, although these are from the first day of my site’s inception, so it shouldn’t be old hat just yet.


I have made these outrageous Flintstone-worthy ribs several times now, and they never fail to impress. They are so flavorful, and they fill your house with the kind of smell that makes dinner guests really happy for the invitation, so they were a natural choice for tonight. If you do serve these to guests, or in general, make sure you have some napkins on hand--the name doesn't lie. I served these to our lovely friends with scallion fried rice and blistered green beans. Individual lemon souffles topped off a gastronomically perfect evening of food, drink, and conversation.



One last note: I am giving you the recipe I normally make, but since we have guests tonight, and said guests gifted me with a huge box of gorgeous organic beef ribs, I decided to tweak this favorite recipe and list it for you again. I doubled the marinade and made 8 lbs. of ribs.


Sticky Country Style Ribs
serves 3-4

3 lb. country style pork ribs
6 Tbsp. soy sauce
6 Tbsp. light brown sugar
4 Tbsp. hoisin sauce
2 Tbsp. rice wine vinegar
2 Tbsp. finely grated ginger
2 cloves finely minced garlic
few dashes crushed red pepper flakes


Place ribs in a large pot of cold water--the beef ribs were so big I finally had a reason to use my 24 quart All-Clad stockpot! Bring to a boil and simmer for 30 minutes (this is kind of gross, to be honest); drain. Pat the ribs dry with paper towels and return to the rinsed, dry pot. Combine the rest of the ingredients in a bowl, wisking well until mixed. Pour over the ribs, turning a few times to coat completely. Marinate at room temperature for at least 30 minutes, turning occasionally. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees (if you are using beef ribs, I recommend heating the oven to 350 and cooking for 15-20 minutes more).



Place the marinated ribs in a single layer in a large roasting pan lined with non-stick aluminum foil, reserving the leftover marinade. Roast for 45 minutes or until dark and sticky (it should smell unbearably good by now). Baste with the extra marinade periodically.


Around here, any leftovers tend to disappear before I can do anything with them, but I keep thinking that the leftover meat, if shredded, would make a really delicious Asian barbeque sandwich, with maybe some sort of Napa cabbage slaw on top. Maybe this summer? Enjoy!

Pork Chops in Mustard Sauce with Polenta "Fries"

We love pork around here, as you can see I cook with it at least once a week. The original pork chop recipe was passed to me by my friend Emily, and it looked pretty good to me so I only made a few changes.

The polenta fries were a complete whim, but they worked well and the flavors were quite nice with the mustard sauce. I am sure you could make your own polenta instead of using the 5 minute boxed kind, but there's only so much I can do, folks. Well, really, I just already had the boxed stuff, so convenience prevailed.


Pork Chops in Mustard Sauce with Polenta "Fries"
serves 2

The heat of the dish should just wilt your spinach, adding a nice textural element.

for the polenta fries:
1 box instant sundried tomato polenta
olive oil


Prepare polenta as directed, then pour into an 8 x 8 baking pan and pat into a uniform, flat square. Let sit, either on the counter or in the refrigerator, for at least an hour so it firms up really well. Slice into 1 inch thick, 3 inch long "fries".


Heat enough olive oil to coat the bottom of a fry pan over medium-high heat. Use a flexible spatula to remove a few of the fries from the pan at a time, and fry on all sides, working in batches. I recommend using a splatter guard--the oil splashes a LOT and makes quite a mess of your stovetop. Drain briefly on a paper towel lined plate before serving.

for the pork chops in mustard sauce:

2 pork center loin chops, about 1 inch thick
sea salt
freshly ground pepper
olive oil
.25 cup dry white wine
1 clove garlic, minced
1 small shallot, minced
.25 cup stock
spoonfull chicken demi-glace (optional)
1 Tbsp butter
1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
1 Tbsp dijon mustard
dash Worcetershire sauce
baby spinach

Sprinkle chops with salt and pepper. Heat a heavy skillet over medium-high heat for 2-3 minutes. Add some olive oil and heat until it just begins to smoke. Add chops, turn heat to high. Brown on both sides for 1-2 minutes per side.


Reduce heat to medium and add wine, garlic, and shallots. Cook, turning chops occasionally, until the wine is all but evaporated. Add stock, turn heat to low, and cover. Cook for 10-15 minutes, turning chops once or twice.

Place a handful of baby spinach on each dinner plate. Place pork on top of spinach. Turn heat to medium high and add butter, lemon, mustard, and Worcestershire sauce. Scraping up the browned bits in the pan, reduce sauce slightly.


Arrange polenta fries on top of pork chops and spoon the sauce over everything. Serve immediately.

Tenderloin "in Crosta"

The inspiration for this dish came to me by way of David Lebovitz, who writes about a dish made for him in Italy called Filetto in Crosta(scroll down). I will tell you up front that you have to start this process a day or two ahead of time, BUT, once you have made the herb rub it is pretty much idiot proof.

Tenderloin "in Crosta"
serves 3-4

for the herb garlic rub:


small handfull fresh rosemary leaves
slightly larger hadfull fresh sage leaves
zest of one lemon (this is my addition, I recommend it)
4-5 cloves garlic
small handfull sea salt

Chop all ingredients together until very, very fine--I actually grated the zest and garlic on a microplane and combined it with everything else. Spread out on a large dinner plate and leave out until dry--1 or 2 days. Once dry, you can store this for a week or two in a tightly sealed jar. Lebovitz recommends this for any number of purposes, including mixing it with olive oil and using it as a dipping sauce for bread. Oh, yum.


for the tenderloin:

one smallish pork tenderloin
1 french batard (like a fatter baguette)
herb garlic rub
olive oil

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.


Heat some olive oil in a skillet over high heat and sear the pork quickly on all sides. Transfer to a plate. Slice the batard lengthwise and drizzle each half generously with some olive oil. Sprinkle with the herb garlic rub--be careful to not use too much or the bread will be too salty. Sandwich the browned tenderloin between the two slices and wrap tightly with aluminum foil. Cook directly on the oven rack for about an hour and fifteen minutes (the meat should reach 160 degrees and still be pink in the center. Yes, it is done enough). Remove from oven and let sit, wrapped in foil, for 5 minutes. Slice and serve.


We had this with some seared asparagus and the mushroom soup I wrote about below. I highly recommend eating it like this: a small bit of the crunchy, herb-infused bread, stabbed with a bit of pork, and dunked in the mushroom soup. Please, try this, I beg you. The meat turns out so tender and flavorful, and the bread maintains its crunch, with so little effort on your part. Enjoy!

Edited to add: I've submitted this to Weekend Herb Blogging over at Kalyn's Kitchen. You should check out her site for tons of great herb recipe ideas!