Tuesday, December 8, 2009

San Francisco Pork Chops

For about a year, the hubby and I worked in towns two hours apart, so we lived in the middle and split the driving difference each day. We had a horrid winter that year; the snow in our yard was more than waist high, and it we were pummeled with snowstorm after snowstorm.

I ended up working from home a lot that winter, and used my slow cooker every day that I did. I'd throw something in during my morning coffee break or my lunch break, and the hubby and I had supper ready as soon as he got home.

This is one of the recipes that I discovered during that stretch, and it's been a favorite ever since. It's incredibly quick and easy, and the result is some very tender pork chops in a spicy teriyaki-type sauce.

I usually serve this with rice or mashed potatoes so the yummy sauce isn't wasted, but tonight I stir-fried some veggies and noodles, and used some of the sauce as a basis for some stir-fry sauce.

A note of caution that this dish can easily become overcooked; if you're not familiar with whether your slow cooker runs hotter or cooler, you might want to try this on a day when you're home. (When I got a new slow cooker that ran significantly warmer than my last, I came home to some lovely charred chops stuck to the bottom of my crockpot in what appeared to be tar. Yum!)

As always, be sure to check out Crockpot Wednesdays on Dining with Debbie!

San Francisco Pork Chops
Serves 4

4 boneless pork loin chops (not thin-cut)
Salt and pepper
2 tsp. oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 c. soy sauce, preferably a thick variety (I'd recommend my favorite brand, but it's been discontinued)
1/4 c. chicken broth
2 Tbsp. brown sugar
1/4-1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
1 Tbsp. cornstarch
1 Tbsp. water

1. Sprinkle chops with salt and pepper. Heat oil in a pan over medium-high heat and brown chops on both sides.

2. Remove chops from pan and add to slow cooker.

3. Reduce heat to medium and add garlic to pan. Cook about 30 seconds, until garlic starts to turn golden.

4. Combine soy sauce, broth, brown sugar, and crushed red pepper. Add to pan and cook until sugar is dissolved, about 1 minute.

5. Pour mixture over chops.

6. Cover and cook on low about 6 hours.

7. Remove chops. Combine cornstarch and water, and add to sauce. Return pork chops to slow cooker. Cover and cook an additional 30 minutes or until sauce is thickened.

8 comments:

Cathy said...

Those look amazing! I would love the option to work from home when the weather is like that...unfortunately that is not how it works in the retail world :(

Anonymous said...

Wow, those pork chops are beautiful and sound super tender and delicious! I need to get a slow cooker!

Palidor said...

An hour commute? I'm glad you don't have that anymore! That's brutal. The pork chops look delicious. What was your favorite brand of soy sauce?

angelinthekitchen said...

I loved the House of Tsang Thick and Hot soy sauce. We've bought some thicker soy sauces from the Aisan market that work well, too, but this stuff is REALLY thick and concentrated, but not overly salty. And they stopped making it.

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Joanne said...

I really hope I never have to commute that far, ever. I would hate sitting still for that long!

The crockpot is an amazing thing though. I love throwing stuff in in the morning and then coming home to delicious food and smells. This sounds like a great recipe!

And in response to your comment, I think the pie would be great with some chocolate drizzled over it. I meant to add some white chocolate chunks to it during the baking process but totally forgot. Guess I'll just ahve to make it again...

Natasha in Oz said...

That look so yummy and I bet it smelt divine when cooking it!

Hope your and your family are well and not suffering too much with the cold weather.

Best wishes, Natasha.

Karine said...

That is a great way to cook with pork chops!