Beer Braised Pork Chops

Now we cook a lot with wine, but we forget about using beer. My Beer Braised Pork Chops are tender, juicy and flavourful. Beer adds an earthly flavour to this savoury dish. Did you know that beer is also used in baking? It depends on the beer you use. Today, I use a light coloured beer and don’t worry about your kids consuming it, the alcohol evaporates in the cooking process.

Growing up Italian there were two drinks at our table: wine or water. It is the same when I visit Italy these days. Few people order a beer with a meal. Peroni and Moretti make their way to the table for pizza. At home, my nonno and dad always made wine. They both enjoyed a cold beer on a hot summer day after they returned from work. As kids we use to get to taste the foam at the top. I like a good beer too, but only with my pizza. This makes me a true Italian.

I buy 1/2 inch thick pork chops from the butcher. Don’t forget to make little slits in the chops around the edges. This prevents meat like pork or beef from curling. I use this same method when I make Osso Bucco. This is a method I adapted this method from Chef Gordon Ramsey and it works.

Another one of my pork and beer recipes https://recipesatmytable.com/pork-and-beans/

For more information on beer read this article https://craftbeerclub.com/blog/post/dos-and-donts-for-cooking-with-beer

Ingredients

2 tbsp brown sugar
salt
2 tbsp olive oil
red pepper chilli flakes or 1 tsp Italian seasoning
1/3 cup each of soy sauce and apple cider vinegar 4 pork chops, 1/2-inch thick
2 tsp corn starch plus a little water for a slurry
1 1/3 cup beer 1 tablespoon olive oil
2 cloves minced garlic

Process

Make little slits in the pork chops and rub with the brown sugar, salt and Italian seasoning. Take kitchen scissors and cut three little slits around the pork chops to prevent curling while cooking.

Mix the beer, soy sauce ,garlic, apple cider vinegar and set aside

Place the pork chops in a skillet with 2 tbsp of olive oil and brown over medium heat. See how my pork chops stay flat without curling; that is from making the slits in them before frying.