Pork Chops with Drunken Sausage Gravy and Brown Rice with Mixed Vegetables - 6/30/11

The beginning of my cooking frenzy after being separated from Wusthoff santoku knife for 10 days - inspired by a recipe from Guy Fieri.  I would also serve biscuits with this, as there is plenty of extra heavenly sausage gravy.  If you need to thin the gravy when reheating, use a mixture of milk or cream and vermouth.  This is spicy, but not obnoxiously so. 

Ingredients:
4 center cut rib pork chops (about 1 3/4 pounds)

Southern Spice Rub (Paula Deen) or another cumin-based spice blend of your liking 

Wondra flour

1/4 cup canola oil for pan-frying

 

Drunken Sausage Gravy, recipe follows:

 

One large onion, diced

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1/2 teaspoon white pepper

1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon red chili flakes

Garlic powder

2 good pinches of dry sage

Sugar

1- 9.6 oz pouch cooked sausage crumbles (Jimmy Dean)

1/3 cup vermouth

2 tablespoons Dijon mustard

2/3 cup all-purpose flour

4 cups milk

 

In a Dutch oven, heat the canola oil over medium high heat.  Sprinkle both sides of the chops with the spice rub, and then the Wondra flour.  In two batches, brown the chops in the hot oil.  Place the chops into a very low oven to keep warm.

 

In the same Dutch oven, add the onions, season them with the salt, black pepper, white pepper, red pepper flakes, garlic powder, sage, and sugar and saute until translucent, about 5 minutes . Add the sausage and continue to saute until it starts to brown.  Deglaze with the vermouth, and reduce for 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in the Dijon and sprinkle in the flour. Cook for 3 to 4 minutes, stirring constantly, to cook out the raw flavor of the flour.

 

Add 1 cup of the milk and stir until combined. Add the remaining milk and mix until it's just starting to thicken. Stir in the cream and heat through. Adjust the seasoning with salt, pepper, additional spices and a little more mustard.  Thin if necessary with a little more vermouth.

Place the chops in the Dutch oven with the gravy , cover,  and place in a 325 degree oven for at least 30 minutes, until heated through and the chops are tender. 

 

 

Serve this side dish with the chops:

 

Brown Rice with Mixed Vegetables

 

2 boil-in-bags of brown rice

1-7 oz. can Green Giant Mexicorn, drained, can retained

1 bag or box of frozen peas and carrots

1-2 tablespoons butter

kosher salt

 

Prepare two boil in bags of brown rice according to package directions for the ten minute cooking time.

 

Fill empty Mexicorn can with mixed frozen peas and carrots.  During last five minutes, gradually add  peas and carrots to the boiling water in which the rice is cooking.  If it seems to take a while for the water to boil, add a minute or so to the overall cooking time.

 

Remove rice bags to drain and drain the peas and carrots into the same colander with the corn.  When everything is well drained, combine and add some butter and salt to taste.  Stir gently until the butter is melted into the hot rice.