Pork on Pork Action

If this is what you were thinking when you read the post title...

GET YOUR MINDS OUT OF THE GUTTER PEOPLE!!!!

In all seriousness, we really did have some pork on pork action at dinner last night. Yesterday morning I decided that I wanted to have pork chops for dinner. During my daily meal planning session, generally at lunch or on the way to work in the morning, I was trying to figure out how I could make my center cut, lean pork chops special. I have done them on the grill with rubs and sauce, marinated in balsamic and Italian dressing, and oven roasted them in my amazing cast iron Le Creuset pan. I wanted something different... so Bacon Wrapped Pork Chops it was. I figured the bacon would add some nice flavor and help to keep the chops moist and I was SOOO right. 

Let's discuss some bacon wrapping technique. On something of this magnitude you are going to need full slices of real bacon. No sissy center cut or turkey bacon allowed here. Not to mention that most of the fat from pork belly (that's what fancy people call bacon) will cook off on the grill. You will also need to secure the bacon in several spots with wooden tooth picks. Save the plastic ones for your party appetizers or fru fru drinks. I like to put about 4 evenly spaced picks in something of this size. If you think you need it, and I did on this one, you can secure where the ends of the bacon meet with an extra pick. I would also suggest using the non-dyed variety. As you can see above, I couldn't find my regular ones and ended up using the rainbow colored party picks. 

Grill your chops to your desired done-ness. Please do not ruin your pork chops by turning them into inedible pork hockey pucks. Unfortunately, I grew up disliking pork chops because my mom LOVES overcooked, dry pork chops. It is perfectly safe to eat a juicy, tender chop these days! You will also want to watch out for flare ups on the grill from the dripping bacon fat. Time for the final, and probably the most important, cooking with toothpicks tip. Remember to REMOVE THE TOOTHPICKS before serving. If your loved one(s) is anything like my happy husband, you will have a very unhappy dining enthusiast on your hands when they sink their teeth into a pointy toothpick of destruction (see picture above). I know this from personal experience!!

For the sides for our Pork on Pork Action meal, I went with our old stand by of roasted potatoes and roasted Brussels sprouts. The potatoes were tossed with extra virgin olive oil, garlic salt, and pepper. The sprouts had a similar treatment but with lemon pepper seasoning rather than garlic salt. When I cook these two sides on the same tray I take the sprouts off when they start to brown around the outer leaves and I take the potatoes out when they get a little crispy on the edges. The sprouts will undoubtedly cook faster than the potatoes but will hold their crunch and heat nicely if kept on a plate on top of the hot toaster oven or in the microwave.

I'll leave you with this photo of the plate all put together. Hopefully I will get some different plates soon to help showcase the Happy Husband Diner meals. I am also happy to say that even my hockey puck pork chop loving mother enjoyed this juicy Pork on Pork Action. On a side note: Barry got an awesome new DSLR camera for the business and is letting me use it for the food shots. I hope you enjoy the higher quality photos as much as I enjoy taking them!!