Lemon Poppy Seed Pork Chops

My Lemon Poppy Seed Pork chops are savoury and sweet; today I am serving them with grilled strawberries and asparagus. I loved visiting with family, but I also love coming home to Southern Ontario.  It’s barbecue time and I want to try some new things on the grill.  Today’s recipe features the other white meat.

I like red wine and this dish pairs well with a light red from Italy : try Italian Dolcetto d’Alba from Piedmont with these Lemon Poppy Seed Pork Chops.  This wine had medium acidity, fruity flavour and few tannins.   I like to pair food and wines; sometimes it gets me into trouble with too much wine tasting.

Growing up as an immigrant there was no pairing; we had nonno’s standard wine that adorned every table.  We grew up drinking wine at the supper table; we all had our little glasses and it helped digestion.  To this day my brothers, sister and I are not big drinkers.  I do enjoy my wine.

As I choose the wine for this dish I remember how we had to call the homes of any of our friends who stayed for supper when we were growing up after one parent was upset that their child drank wine at our table.

From then on, we would always call and ask permission.  We didn’t get a lot of wine, maybe 1/4 of a cup, but to some people it was offensive.  You would be surprised at who is the biggest wine drinker in the world today https://www.movehub.com/blog/wine-consumption-worldwide-2017/

My vegetables today all come from the local markets here in Leamington, Ontario.  I toss the strawberries with a little canola oil and the same for the asparagus and add some spices.

The centre cut pork chops have marinated for a few hours; the yogurt dressing clings to them.

Everything on the barbecue looks so good.  See the grill marks on the strawberries.

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Lemon Poppy Seed Pork Chops

White meat on the grill.  

Course Main Course

Cuisine Home Cooking in Canada, Italian

Prep Time 20 minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes

Total Time 30 minutes

Servings 4

Author Renata Solski

Ingredients

The pork chops and marinade

• 4 large centre cut pork chops
• 4 tbsp lemon juice
• 1/2 cup plain greek yogurt
• 2 tsp canola oil
• 1 tbsp poppy seed
• 2 tsp honey
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp black pepper

Strawberries and asparagus.

• 1 container strawberries
• 1 bunch asparagus
• 1/2 cup canola oil
• 2 tbsp italian seasoning
• balsamic glaze

Instructions

The pork chops and marinade

1. Mix all the ingredients and pour over the pork chops.

   Refrigerate in a large container for at least 4 hours.

   Shake the container a few times during the marinade process to evenly disperse dressing.

   
   

Strawberries and asparagus

1. Wash strawberries and asparagus.

   Let dry.

   Trim and clean asparagus.  Quick video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lymoBafFwso

   Pour marinade over straw berries and Asparagus.

   Toss to ensure each piece is covered.

   Let sit for 5 minutes.

   
   

   
   

Cooking

1. Make sure that the grill is hot.

   I cook at medium/low for the pork chops. This ensures that your chops won't burn or cause a fire.

   They were thick and did 4 minutes per side.

   I put the asparagus on a barbecue pan and put them on at the same time as the pork chops.

   Put the strawberries on one minute before everything is done.

   I used a store bought balsamic glaze to finish the dish.