Once again, I have overcooked pork chops!

[tuftears]

This time I went for thick pork chops from Whole Foods Market. These, I reasoned, would surely not cook as quickly, so I could reasonably sear them on both sides, then bake them to moist, juicy tenderness.

I was so wrong. When will I learn?



These are 6 oz. pork chops. They had thin ones out in the plastic wrapped packages, but I wanted thick pork chops this time-- among other things, I always plan for these meals to be taken over to my mom's house, which is about 20 minutes, so I wanted them to retain heat reasonably well, which I expected that thin pork chops would not.

I seared them on both sides, then popped them into the oven at 350 degrees, swimming in a mix of apple cider and pineapple juice, which I reasoned would result in moist cooking, and set the timer for 60 minutes. 30 minutes later, I checked on them, intending to flip them over, and noticed they felt rather firm, so I cut one in half... Sure enough, it had been cooked through for some time.

Stupid recipes. -_-

Whole Foods Market had run out of zucchinis, so I used yellow crookneck squashes as you can see. Those tasted fine.

Comments

[anher.livejournal.com]

Normally when we make pork chops we'll cook them in a pan. Much easier to keep an eye on how much they've cooked that way.

Not that it always prevents them from turning out like yours, but it helps.

[katepufftail.livejournal.com]

Meat is stupidly hard to do in the oven, because there are so many variables that go into the cooking: weight, and shape, and surface area, and whatever. So, I've been taught that the best way to cook meat in the oven is to do it by temperature, and not by time. This might be a little cumbersome with cuts as small as chops, but I always stick a meat thermometer into the meat, and cook at a very low temperature (~250, or so) until they reach a set tempreture, then either finish them at a high temp. in the oven, on on the cooktop, to put a nice seer on the meat.

Again, I've not tried this with anything quiet so thin as a chop, so your mileage may vary!

[jordangreywolf.livejournal.com]

I always go with a pan (or a grill) for chops. It's a lot easier to keep on top of how well it's cooking through, and, if necessary, cut it to see if it's still pink in the middle or not. What with the wide variety in shapes and sizes of chops, I wouldn't trust them to an oven, a set temperature, and a set time and just hope it cooks through uniformly. Ovens are good for recipes where you've got a lot of slush factor, and can afford to err on the side of overcooking things by a good margin (to make sure that everything in the pan is thoroughly cooked).

Re: Squash/zucchini: I actually prefer to have a MIX of yellow squash and zucchini when I serve it. :D It adds more visual interest to the plate, at the very least.

[rowyn]

Looks tasty though! :)

[sassinak.livejournal.com]

I served overcooked, dry porkchops this weekend, too. If you stumble on the secret to doing them right, please post it!