Pork chop marsala may be my new favorite way to enjoy this. It’s from a category of Italian food that everyone in the world loves, so how could it be bad? It lives with the piccata’s, cacciatore’s, and vesuvio’s. (Chicago shout out!) A simple flour-dusted pork chop seared in a pan with caramelized onions, mushrooms, and garlic. It’s deglazed with a fortified Marsala wine for sweetness, balanced with chicken broth and cream. This dish is so flavorful that you have to also think about what you’ll be dipping into the sauce. Potatoes, polenta, bread, or just your fingers. Check this one out!
I didn’t grow up eating chicken marsala, as the dish is classically known. I found foods that contained wine disgusting after my first sip of communion wine. It kind of ruins wine for you at a young age. When I started making this in the restaurant or for clients, it took me a minute to get the hang of it. First, it was too brothy, then it was too thick, then it was too wine-heavy. Trust this recipe to take you all the way your first time around.
If you cook a lot, this recipe should make perfect sense. Brown the meat, brown the veg, deglaze with wine, make the sauce. If you don’t cook a lot, follow those steps. Sometimes cooking is that easy. Believe me, when you cook for a long time, things just start to make sense.
Start with beautiful pork chops from the butcher or deli counter. I don’t like huge chops, but I don’t want tiny scrawny ones either. It’s the highlight of the dish, so treat yourself to some good chops. Next, brown the veg and brown it well. I like to quarter my mushrooms for the look, but brown them well. Once the sauce is made, the unbrowned mushrooms will show.
Make the sauce with the precise measurements or by picturing the ratios. Use equal parts wine and broth, but let the wine reduce in the hot pan first. This is called deglazing, and it will concentrate the wine’s flavor. The broth is the bulk of the sauce. The cream is the last ingredient, and we’re using it for mouth-feel, so half the chicken broth is enough. Let the sauce reduce until you reach peak creamy sauce. It’s such an accomplishment to build a tasty sauce. Excited to see what you think about this.
Pork Chop Marsala
Diet: Low-Calorie
Ingredients
- 4 thick-cut boneless pork chops
- Kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper, to taste
- All-purpose flour, for dusting plus two tablespoons
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 tablespoon avocado oil
- 8 oz. pint baby portobello mushrooms, sliced
- 1 shallot, finely diced
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 4 sprigs fresh thyme
- 3/4 cup marsala wine
- 1/2 cup chicken stock
- 1/3 cup heavy cream
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
Preparation
- Pat dry all four pork chops and season with salt and pepper. Dust each piece with flour using a mesh sifting basket or a spoon. The chops should be completely coated.
- Preheat a heavy bottomed cast iron pan with the butter and oil over medium-high heat until the butter melts.
- Add the seasoned pork chops to the pan and sear for 4 minutes per side, or until deeply golden brown. The pork will finish cooking in the sauce. Remove pork to a plate and build the sauce.
- Add the shallots and mushrooms to the pan after reducing the heat to medium heat. Sauté the veg for 6 - 8 minutes until the mushrooms start to brown.
- Add the garlic to the pan with the 2 tablespoons of flour, then continue cooking for an additional minute.
- Deglaze the pan with marsala wine and cook until the wine has thickened.
- Add the chicken stock and bring to a boil. Let the sauce cook until the mixture has reduced a gets thicker.
- Finish with the fresh thyme, heavy cream, and dijon mustard. Season gently with salt and pepper, then add the pork chops back to the pan. Cook the mixture until the pork chops are fully cooked at 140˚F and the sauce is nicely thickened.
- Remove the thyme sprigs from the pan, taste the sauce for seasoning, and enjoy!