Not true with these pork chops. They were the signature item at a B&B Dave and I used to frequent. I assure you, unless you have been to that particular B&B, you've never had anything like these.
The first time I made them, I made them for Dave. It was before we were married and I wanted to make him a nice dinner. I called my brother. I know that when a restaurant puts out a cookbook they almost never give you the exact recipe from the restaurant. They want it to be close but not quite so you'll keep coming back. So I called him to ask what was missing from the recipe. He was the head chef at the restaurant at the time.
His exact words were, I'll never forget them, "don't even try you'll screw it up". I insisted and eventually he told me the trick was to keep the chops completely immersed in liquid the entire cooking time. That was all I needed to know!
You start with center cut, bone in, pork chops cut two inches thick. Yes, two inches thick! I had a butcher cut them an inch thick once because he didn't believe I really wanted them two inches thick! They will be about a pound a piece.
Next you need a reduced pork broth. Ok, so the first time I made them I didn't have any of that so I used beef broth cut with a little chicken broth. It seemed to work. From that point forward I save the remaining pork broth after the chops are cooked. I strain the bits of seasonings and pork and remove the fat and put the remaining liquid in the freezer for the next time I make them. And you will want to make them again once you've had them!
Other than that there are no real tricks to this great recipe.
Here's a LINK to the recipe. NOTE: Four cups of pork broth and 1/2 a cup of wine are not nearly enough to cover the chops for the entire cooking time. You will need more! I generally start with about six quarts of liquid then reduce that by half. I also decrease the cooking temperature to 300 and cook for closer to 4 hours.
Also, I don't thicken the gravy with flour. I use corn starch. I think you can taste the flour while the corn starch just thickens. I also finish the gravy with a few tablespoons of butter. If you're going to eat a pound of pork, what's a little butter?
Brown the chops well then place them in a covered roaster. Cover with the delicious broth and stick them in the oven. After an hour or so your house will start to smell amazing! After two to two and a half hours check on them. Make sure no additional liquid is needed. If it is add more broth or, even better, more wine!
The gravy is amazing. Check my note above about using corn starch instead of flour and finishing with butter. I've also finished with a little dark chocolate in the past too! Gravy is one of Dave's favorite foods!
Because there's gravy there must be potatoes. That's Dave's rule. I make mashed. Sometimes I flavor with roasted garlic, sometimes with blue cheese. Either way they are delicious! They are bound to amaze friends too and you don't need to tell anyone how easy they really are to make!
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