Pork Chops

Hi everyone;

I know I promised pheasant chili for the next post and Yes I made it but took no pictures so I will have to see if I can take one when I defrost one of the batches and share it then.. But until then here are some killer pork chops - anyone can make...

I start with some 3/4 to 1" boneless center cut chops - believe it or not the school supporting organization called "Market Day" have some of the best vacuum sealed boneless chops I have found - and reasonably priced too. So you get good quality products and help support your local elementary school too - everybody wins. So this recipe is super easy-- but has a couple of twists. Here are your ingredients:

2 center cut boneless pork chops 3/4- 1" thick

4 Tbsp Corn Starch

3 eggs

1 Cup Panko bread crumbs

1 Cup Regular bread crumbs

Salt & Pepper (to taste)

Onion Powder (to taste)

Granulated Garlic (to taste)

1/4 cup Olive Oil

2 Tbsp Butter

Oven at 350*

OK, here goes - I use zip lock bags for wet and dry breading but you can use pans, bowls or what ever you usually use.

salt and pepper chops to taste

Dredge chops in Corn Starch - let stand in rack or even paper towel for at least 5 minutes (this is the secret to getting the breading to stick - let the carbohydrates and starches bind the the proteins of the pork chops) - you will be able to tell when ready as the starch will start to look a little damp and that is the sign the bonding has started.

While that is going on, whisk together the 3 eggs with a tablespoon of water to make the wet portion of the breading. Season with onion powder, granulated garlic, and what ever spices you like (thyme and rosemary work well with pork too)

Also place both types of bread crumbs in a vessel and mix together, again season with any spices you like- I find the Panko and the traditional bread crumbs make a very nice texture on the final product.

Place one chop at a time in the egg mixture and ensure the chop is covered completely. Then place in the breadcrumb mixture.

Take the breaded chop out - and then place BACK in the egg mixture - then place again in the Bread crumbs (here is the second key - Place the double breaded chop on a plate to rest for at least 5 minutes before starting the cooking process). Repeat with second chop.

While chops are resting, prepare skillet with Olive Oil and butter - I like using the butter as I let it get a little brown and foamy- thus giving some additional nutty flavor to the crust.

Fry on medium high heat until brown and then flip to brown second side (about 4-6 minutes per side).

Place skillet with chops in preheated 350* oven for 15-20 minutes - or until minimum of 146* internal temp (remember there will be a little extra cooking during the rest period).

I serve this with steamed green beans, and cous cous, polenta or some other starch.

For you Ike-o-philes, next post will talk about our latest hunting adventure...

Talk to you soon!

"Now We're Talkin'"

Hi everyone;

As promised we really did go to South Dakota to do some Pheasant hunting and thanks to the graces of God and good weather we had a successful hunt. While there won't be any recipes on this installment, we will talk about Ike and what he loves to do. Ike did good job on Public ground the first day. For those of you that don't know South Dakota has about 4 MILLION acres in varoius public access areas for hunting. Hunting in general and non-resident hunters generate an estimate 12% of the gross income for the state-so it is big business. Public gound is more difficult and usually need BIG groups of people to hunt them as many times you are walking in 300+acre plots. There were just us 3, Bryan, Ken and myself and Ike. While we saw a couple roosters (you can only shoot roosters) right out of the box, they were too wiley and flushed too far out for a shot - I considered that a good omen... But after that we saw only Hens.. Ike did really well finding them - one field he found 4 but again we couldn't shoot them.. (Man did I get a dirty look from him after the 3rd one -like, "Hey I did my job -now do yours!"

But we did have a pretty good day at the Private Ground on Friday. On the left you see part of are group as well as Ike with our harvest of our "limit". Pictured front and center is Ike, although I think he was still looking for one more bird- but flanking Ike and I are our two guides Larry and Lowell, (and Mocha) great guys and wonderful dog (Larry's 2 labs are in the background in his truck)

Here is a pic of Ike with his first retrieve in South Dakota - He extracted the tail feathers in the process but he brought it back to me - so that is a good thing.

He was a tired puppy every night but he was rearing to go the next morning. What he lacks in size he makes up for in determination!!

Next Blog - Pheasant Chilli.... Mmmm..

Until then, "Ike, Find that bird!"

It's Hunting Time

Hi everyone- sorry its been so long since my last post.

It's finally that time of year. I took Ike last week to Silver Springs State Park where they release pheasants for hunting in about 300 acres of prairie grasses to get a little "reacquainted" with what he is bred to do. Summer months are hard, you can only do so much bumper retrieving, and training so we both were really looking forward to doing that. I was hesitant to do that as I have heard horror stories about un safe hunters, and injuries to dogs etc., but we promised to be careful and went out. Well, Ike pointed one, and lived up to my part of the partnership and landed the bird. I suppose you were hoping to see a pic or two of the successful adventure but I kind of shot the bird up so much it really wasn't such a good pic :( Sorry. But there will be more to come... I promise.

But This is "Cooking With Ike" so in honor of the season, I will share with you a recipe of smoked pheasant breasts - (remember I promised that in an earlier blog). It really doesn't take to much work, and since the meat is SOOOOOO lean you don't need to smoke it all day like a pork roast or even 4-5 hours like a brisket... Just a couple hours and it takes on nice flavor and patina.

I cleaned and marinated the breasts in a mixture of Olive Oil, Peach Cider,Hot sauce, Sesame Oil and Garlic for about 12 hours in the fridge. The reason I used Peach Cider was because my father in law had received some as a gift for watching a neighbor's house while they visited family in Georgia.

I then wrapped them in thick bacon and smoked them over Pecan Chips soaked in a combination of water and more Peach Cider.

About 3 hours later this is what they looked like:

I then made a bourbon-cider glaze by reducing about a cup of cider and about a shot of Bourbon over medium heat until it became syrup like and then drizzled that over the breasts. They were quite good..

I saved the leftovers for some Smoked-Pheasant Ravioli with Sage Brown Butter....

Until then, "Ike Find that Bird"