MIKEY BELL

I really undercut the magic of this recipe with that unimaginative title, didn’t I?

Fried. Pork. Chops.

But that’s what they are! I thought of a few different ways to approach it… Mustard Pork Chop? But that implies the chop itself is mustardy, which it’s not NOT mustardy, but it also felt like an overpromise because the mustardy-ness is certainly tempered by the honey.

And Honey Mustard Pork Chop felt a bit like something you could get at an establishment that does unlimited trips to the salad bar for bread rolls and butter (no shade, big fan) but just didn’t summarise what we have here.

It’s a fried pork chop as in, if I was tasked with serving a fried pork chop for dinner, this is how I’d do it, and it’s just GOOD.

Pork chops can be so many things to so many people – some see a succulent savoury masterpiece; some see a dry and disappointing wedge of meat. It can be both but it also could to be neither – it could just be a really crispy, golden-edged, almost burnished, perfect eating experience that needs little thought but delivers maximum pleasure. Isn’t that all we want from anything in life?

It’s a standard marinade in a bag, toss it in flour, throw it in a pan, throw it in the oven affair, which is, let’s be fair, the basis of most good fried recipes so this is not a unique, ground breaking approach at all, it’s just a reminder of possibility and opportunity when you have a chop in your fridge and gorge food in your aspirations.

This recipe goes all in on the flavour that is balanced in its tang, warmth, sweetness, all accounting for the fact that the pork itself comes with a spikey saltiness of its own, and this full throttle flavour means you can almost go anywhere with sides.

I’m thinking:

• Creamy mashed potatoes made with warm cream, all the butter in the world, and some old-school white pepper
• A thinly sliced fennel, apple, and white cabbage slaw made with creamy coconut yogurt and a little white distilled vinegar
• Steamed broccoli or cauliflower tossed in some hot, melted butter flecked with chilli flakes or Aleppo pepper
• Boiled green beans, or even some frozen peas, stirred through some garlicky butter (god damn, there’s a lot of butter going on in these recommendations)
• Some fresh gnocchi toasted in olive oil and dusted with a little paprika
• Not all of the above together btw,

These were off the top of my head, but you get the jist.

Serves 2

2 hefty pork chops (marbled with as much fat as you can stand to look at)

2 tbs Dijon mustard

1 tbs wholegrain mustard

1 tbs apple cider vinegar

1 tsp dried thyme leaves

1 tsp runny honey

1 garlic clove 

2 tbs unsalted butter

1 tsp olive oil

4 tbs plain flour

½ tsp sweet paprika

½ tsp onion powder

1. Open a ziplock bag and place the chops inside. Add the mustards, vinegar, thyme, honey, and then mince in the garlic. Add a little salt and pepper, close the bag, and massage the chops until they are thoroughly coated.
2. Allow the chops to marinate – I’ll say 30 mins is fine if you must, but I just leave them overnight in the fridge, but either way make sure the chops come to room temperature before you cook.
3. When you’re ready to cook, preheat the oven to 200°C and on a medium heat, gently melt the butter and oil in a heavy-based frying pan that you can transfer from hob to oven – a skillet, for example – just any pan with no plastic handles.
4. While the butter melts, fork together the flour, paprika, onion powder, and some salt and pepper, in a shallow bowl. Take the chops out of their bag and give them a shake – you want them wet enough to hold flour but not so drenched that they waterlog the flour bowl. Dredge them in the seasoned flour, shaking off any excess so that they are thoroughly, but lightly, coated.
5. Once the butter is melted and foaming, fry the chops for 2 – 3 minutes a side until golden but not fully cooked. Hopefully the coating will be intact when you flip. Sometimes mine don’t and there’s a tiny bit or two that is stuck to the pan. Don’t be disheartened. Learn, turn your heat down slightly next time, and be delighted that it will still taste amazing either way.
6. Transfer the skillet to the oven and roast for about 10 – 12 minutes until they are cooked through, and the coating is bronzed and scorched in parts.
7. Once out of the oven, let them rest for a few minutes before serving.