Grilled Pork Chops

The procedure here is another example of grilling after brining some meat. Click on the small photos for larger views.

We brined the six pork chops for about two hours about a gallon of water with a cup of kosher salt and a cup of sugar.

After rinsing and drying the chops. I fired up the Kamado, and brought the temperature to about 700 degrees for searing. I tossed a couple of chunks of cherry wood on the fire for smoke and flavor.

We recently started using some of Hoboken Eddie's sauces, and wanted to see how some of them would do on pork.

After searing both sides, I started basting with the sauces. Three chops got the Merlie's Magic sauce (made with oranges, pineapples, and jalapeno peppers)... they are the lighter color chops. The other three were basted with the Sweet & Sour Habanero sauce (raspberry, apricot and habanero peppers).

I shut down the airflow to the Kamado, so the meat would "dwell" at about 450 degrees to finish off the cooking. I basted lightly at first, because I didn't want too much burning, and I turned the chops twice, adding more baste each time.

I took the chops off the grill when the internal temperature read 150 degrees (we don't cook pork chops to death). The meat was very juicy, in great part attributed to the brining. Both sauces were delicious, I'd be hard pressed to choose a favorite.

Maple Pork Chops

Memorial Day Weekend 2005--

We went to a major crafts fair in Ulster County NY this weekend.

One of the things we were introduced to was some wonderful maple syrup from a small family owned producer, The Berkshire Sweet Gold Maple Farm. Their web site makes interesting reading, both about syrup production and the role of small family farms.

At their booth, they set up "maple shots", small sips of their incredible varieties for passers-by to taste. These are quite different than the commercial syrups we find in stores. These had complex tastes, each one different from the other... much like doing a wine tasting.

These are single-crop, single-batch syrups. We were hooked immediately.

We got some of their Amber and their "B" dark syrups.

We decided to try them out by mixing up a glaze made from some of the syrup mixed with brown mustard, and reduced apple juice.

Lauren brined the chops for about an hour, and I put these (rather thick) chops on the grill for about 4 minutes per side at 550 degrees. I then basted the "up" side and turned the meat over again (getting the cross hatch effect). Normally I don't turn more than once, but I didn't want to put the glaze on too early because of the potential for burning.

I turned down the heat to about 350 for the remaining time, basting every once in a while, removing the meat when the internal temperature was 145-150 degrees

Served simply with baked beans and Lauren's cole slaw, it was a fantastic meal.

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