Garlic Rosemary Brined Pork Chops with Celery Root Puree and Asparagus Fries | Feasting on a Budget

Today’s RGB photos: the last of the apples and the start of some fennel:

Winter apple.

Winter fennel.

Dog-approved snack. See the half-eaten apple?

Pork chops were on sale at the market this week for $1.47/lb. Our 3.85-lb. purchase came with 6 pieces, two of which we immediately pulled out to brine for lunch (the rest are salted and sitting the fridge, waiting for another use).

Since it’s winter, we paired the pork with a winter root puree. Since it’s California, we also had access to some skinny asparagus.

I love it when I can eat lunch for $2.80, and I get more than a soup and salad. [K]

RGB Notes: You’ll have to start this the night before if serving for lunch or the morning of before serving for dinner – the pork needs time to brine.

On the RGB iTunes shuffle: Bobagem, Céu. No real reason; it just sounded nice and cheerful on a sunny lunch day.

Click here to view a printable version of this recipe.

Garlic Rosemary Pork Chops with Winter Root Puree and Asparagus Fries

~

~ Serves ~

2

~ Ingredients ~

• 1 lb. bone-in pork chops
• 4 ½ cups water
• 2 tbsp, kosher salt
• 2 tbsp. granulated sugar
• 1 tbsp. ground pepper
• 4 garlic cloves
• 1 large sprig rosemary
• 1 lb. thin asparagus
• ½ tbsp. peanut oil
• Grind of salt and pepper
• 1 tbsp. olive oil
• ½ recipe of Celery Root, Fennel and Apple Purée

~ Preparation ~

Pre-Preparation Time: 2 hours

Active Preparation Time: 45 minutes

1. Start preparation of the Celery Root, Fennel and Apple Purée. Simultaneously:
2. Brine the pork chops for approx. 12 hours: heat water, salt and sugar in pan just until sugar dissolves; remove from heat. Smash garlic cloves and add to mixture. Add rosemary sprig. Cover pan and let cool in refrigerator, about 90 minutes. Once liquid is cool, pour into Ziploc bag, add pork chops, seal and leave in refrigerator for 12 hours. Make sure pork chops are entirely immersed in brine liquid.
3. Preheat oven to 425º F. Lay out two sheet pans with aluminum foil.
4. Rinse asparagus clean and pat dry with paper towel. Snap off ends and discard or save for another use. Cut asparagus in half and place in 1-qt. prep bowl. Add peanut oil, salt and pepper and toss with hands until coated. Lay in single layer on one of the sheet pans and roast for 20 minutes. Meanwhile:
5. Take port out of the brine liquid. Rinse well under running water and then pat dry with paper towels. (Be sure to thoroughly dry off pork – the last paper towel you use should be dry after blotting).
6. In large skillet, heat olive oil and pan-sear pork chops a couple of minutes on each side (until they turn golden brown). Transfer to sheet pan and finish in oven for 5 minutes. To make it easier on yourself, add the pork to the oven when there’s 5 minutes left on the timer for the asparagus.
7. Set the table; when you’re done, so is the food. Plate and serve immediately.

Nutrition content per serving: 514 calories, 27g carbs, 44g protein, 26.5g fat, 5g fiber

Cost per serving: $ 2.80 – $ 3.17

Source: Rustic Garden Bistro

Are you getting apples in February where you are?

Tagged as: Apple, Asparagus, celery root, fennel, Pork, Potato, Rosemary