I was wrong about pork chops
There are certain foods that don’t leave your life so much as fade out of it. No dramatic rejection, no moment where you swear them off. They just stop appearing. You stop thinking about them. And one day you realize it’s been years.
For me, that food is the pork chop.
In my childhood, pork chops were a regular, if unremarkable, presence. Thin-cut. Pan-cooked or baked. Sometimes seasoned simply with salt and pepper, sometimes coated in Shake ’n Bake, that sandy, paprika-tinged breadcrumb mix that crisped into something approximating a crust. They arrived alongside Kraft mac and cheese and green beans, the plate a tidy arrangement of beige, orange and green. It was dinner. It was fine. It was not, in any way, the point.
And then I left home, started cooking for myself and the pork chop quietly disappeared.
Not because I disliked it. I didn’t. But I didn’t feel any particular pull toward it, either. Chicken was easier. Fish felt lighter. Beans felt virtuous, adaptable, endless. The pork chop — economical, widely available, theoretically versatile — simply didn’t make the cut. I passed it in the grocery store without noticing. If it appeared on a menu, I skimmed past it. It had never made a strong enough impression to follow me into adulthood, and so it didn’t.
Which feels, in retrospect, like a ridiculous standard: to exile an entire cut of meat because it didn’t impress me at 12.
There’s a particular kind of culinary amnesia that sets in when you start cooking for yourself. You build a rotation, a set of meals that feel like you — your habits, your tastes, your sense of what’s worth the effort. And in the process, certain foods get left behind. Not because they’re bad, but because they were never fully realized in the first place. You met them too early, or in the wrong context, or without the tools to understand what they could be.
The pork chop, I’m realizing now, was one of those foods.
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Because a pork chop is not inherently boring. It is, in fact, quite the opposite. It has fat, which means flavor. It takes well to a hard sear, which means texture. It plays nicely with sweetness, which means contrast. It is, in other words, an ingredient with range. It just requires a little more attention than it was given in my childhood kitchen.
This is not a critique; it’s simply a recognition: that the food of that time was built for a different purpose. It was about feeding a family, quickly and reliably. It was not about coaxing the maximum possible pleasure out of a cut of meat. It did its job. It just didn’t linger.
But now, cooking for myself, I have the luxury of asking more from it. Here’s how I fell in love with pork chops:
The pork chops
The pork chops of my childhood were thin, boneless, and oven-bound — salted and peppered just before they went in, cooked through without much ceremony. They did their job. They just never became anything more.
These start differently.
Bone-in, for one thing. Thicker. Inspired by Alison Roman’s knack for giving pork chops real presence — the kind that demands a proper sear and a little attention — I started there. Then, following Samin Nosrat’s lead, I gave them time: an overnight dry brine of salt, brown sugar, paprika, and a little fennel powder, the surface quietly transforming while you sleep.
By the time they hit the pan, they’re already seasoned through, already holding onto something deeper.
And then, the sear.
You lay the chop down in a hot pan and leave it alone. No nudging, no checking. Just heat doing its work. Slowly, the surface darkens into something deeply golden, edged in amber, the fat rendering and crisping, the spice blooming in the oil. It’s the kind of color that signals flavor before you even take a bite.
It’s a small shift, but it changes everything: from something cooked through to something built up.
Buttered golden raisins and pine nuts
Pork chops have a long-standing relationship with applesauce — something sweet on the side, a soft counterpoint to the richness. I didn’t want to abandon that instinct so much as … give it a little more range.
This is where it lands.
Golden raisins, warmed slowly in butter until they plump and relax, their sweetness deepening into something almost jammy. The butter takes on that flavor, turning glossy and just a little sticky, clinging to each bite. Pine nuts go in next, toasted until they’re pale gold and rich, adding a quiet, nutty depth.
A pinch of salt, always. Maybe a squeeze of lemon at the end.
Herby rice
The rice is there to hold everything — not just physically, but structurally. A place for the pork juices to settle, for the butter from the raisins to seep into, for the yogurt to drag through in soft, tangy streaks.
It stays simple, on purpose.
Fluffy grains, cooked until tender but still distinct, then finished with a handful of herbs — whatever looks good, whatever you have. Parsley, dill, maybe a little mint. Something green and fresh that cuts through the richness without calling too much attention to itself.
Yogurt sauce
The yogurt is there to soften everything.
Not sharp or overly bright, but mellow. Here, I like creamy, whole-fat; the kind that holds its shape on a spoon. Salted enough to tip it firmly into savory, so it reads as part of the dish, not an afterthought.
More herbs go in here, too. A handful, finely chopped — echoing the rice, but a little more integrated. They settle into the yogurt, turning it green-flecked and fragrant, something you can swipe through rather than drizzle.
Maybe a little olive oil, if you want it. Nothing complicated.
It’s the element that brings the whole plate back into balance. Cooling, yes, but also connective — pulling together the richness of the pork, the sweetness of the raisins, the brightness of the herbs into something that feels cohesive, complete.
Spiced Pork Chops with Buttered Golden Raisins, Pine Nuts and Herby Yogurt Rice
Yields
2-3 servings
Prep Time
20–25 minutes (plus, optional overnight brine)
Cook Time
35 minutes
Ingredients
For the pork chops
- 2–3 bone-in pork chops, about 1–1½ inches thick
- 1½ tsp kosher salt
- 1 tsp brown sugar
- 1 tsp paprika
- ¼ tsp fennel powder (or crushed fennel seeds)
- Freshly ground black pepper
- Neutral oil (for searing)
- 2 tbsp butter
- 1 garlic clove, smashed
For the buttered golden raisins + pine nuts
- ½ cup golden raisins
- 2 tbsp butter
- ¼ cup pine nuts
- Pinch of salt
- Squeeze of lemon juice
For the herby rice
- 2 cups of cooked rice
- ½ cup mixed herbs (parsley, dill, mint — whatever you like)
- 1–2 tbsp olive oil or butter
- Squeeze of lemon
For the yogurt sauce
- 1 cup whole milk Greek yogurt
- ¼ cup finely chopped herbs (same mix as above works well)
- Salt, to taste
- Olive oil (optional)
Directions
- In a small bowl, mix the salt, brown sugar, paprika, fennel, and black pepper. Rub all over the pork chops. Place on a rack or plate and refrigerate uncovered at least 30 minutes, preferably overnight (or up to 24 hours).Let the chops sit at room temperature for about 30 minutes before cooking.
- Cook your rice according to your preferred method: stovetop, rice cooker or even instant.Fluff with a fork, then fold in herbs, olive oil or butter, and a squeeze of lemon. Taste and adjust salt.
- In a bowl, stir together the yogurt, herbs, and a generous pinch of salt. Taste—it should read savory, not bland. Add a drizzle of olive oil if you like. Set aside.
- In a small pan over medium heat, toast the pine nuts until pale golden and fragrant, 3–5 minutes. Transfer to a bowl.
- In the same pan, melt the butter over medium-low heat. Add the raisins and a splash of water (or white wine, if you have it). Let them warm and plump for a few minutes, until glossy and soft.Add the toasted pine nuts back in, season with a pinch of salt, and finish with a squeeze of lemon. Set aside.
- Heat a cast iron skillet over medium-high until very hot. Add a thin layer of neutral oil.Lay the pork chops in the pan and leave them undisturbed for 4–5 minutes, until a deep golden crust forms. Flip and cook another 3–4 minutes.Add the butter and smashed garlic, then tilt the pan and baste the chops for another minute or two, until cooked through (internal temp around 135–140°F for medium; resting will bring it up).
Transfer to a plate and let rest for 5–10 minutes.
- Spoon herby rice onto a plate. Add the pork chop (whole or sliced). Spoon over the buttered raisins and pine nuts. Add a generous dollop of yogurt sauce alongside.Finish with extra herbs, a drizzle of olive oil, and flaky salt if you like.
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from Ashlie D. Stevens
