Bam! is something I usually leave out of most dishes… or, I tend to make one serving without as much. Emeril has something that he calls his special Essence rub. It contains lots of spices including paprika and black pepper. Last night I made the following dish without the Essence rub and without the veal stock in the sauce. I also had to leave out the bourbon in the sweet potatoes b/c I don’t tend to keep bourbon on hand. The meal was divine.
Root Beer Glazed Pork Chops with Bourbon-Mashed Sweet Potatoes and Caramelized Onions
Recipe courtesy Emeril Lagasse from Food Network Favorites: Recipes from Our All-Star Chefs, Meredith Books, 2005
- Prep Time: 25 min
- Cook Time: 1 hr 30 min
Ingredients
- 2 cups root beer
- 2 cups reduced veal stock
- 4 (16-ounce) double-cut bone-in pork chops
- 4 teaspoons Essence, recipe follows
- 4 teaspoons olive oil
- 1 recipe Bourbon-Mashed Sweet Potatoes, recipe follows
- 1 recipe Caramelized Onions, recipe follows
- Parsley leaves, for garnish
Directions
To make the glaze, combine the root beer and stock in a medium heavy saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer until reduced to a thick syrup, about 1 cup, about 50 minutes to 1 hour. Remove from the heat. (NOTE: I only had the root beer and it still worked and tasted great!)
Preheat a grill to medium-high. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
Season each chop on both sides with 1 teaspoon of the Essence. Grill for 3 minutes. Turn each chop 1/4 turn to make grill marks and cook an additional 2 minutes. Turn and cook on the second side for 5 minutes. (NOTE: I seared the meat on the stove in a skillet… I don’t “need” grill marks! ha ha)
Transfer to a baking sheet. Drizzle 1 teaspoon of the olive oil over each chop. Roast until cooked through and an instant-read thermometer inserted into the center reaches 150 degrees F, 12 to 15 minutes. (NOTE: Oops, I forgot the Olive Oil!)
Place the chops on 4 serving plates and drizzle with the glaze. Spoon the Bourbon-Mashed Sweet Potatoes and Caramelized Onions onto the plates, garnish with parsley leaves, and serve.
Emeril’s ESSENCE Creole Seasoning2 1/2 tablespoons paprika
2 tablespoons salt
2 tablespoons garlic powder
1 tablespoon black pepper
1 tablespoon onion powder
1 tablespoon cayenne pepper
1 tablespoon dried oregano
1 tablespoon dried thyme
Combine all ingredients thoroughly.
Yield: 2/3 cup
Recipe from “New New Orleans Cooking”, by Emeril Lagasse and Jessie Tirsch, published by William and Morrow, 1993.
Bourbon-Mashed Sweet Potatoes:1 3/4 to 2 pounds sweet potatoes
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup bourbon whiskey
3 tablespoons light brown sugar
2 tablespoons molasses
1/8 teaspoon salt
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Place the potatoes on a foil-lined baking sheet. Bake until tender and starting to ooze sugary syrup, about 1 hour and 15 minutes, depending on their size. Remove from the oven and let sit until cool enough to handle.
Cut a slit down each potato and scoop the flesh into a large bowl. Discard the skins. Add the cream, bourbon, brown sugar, molasses, and salt and beat on high speed with an electric mixer until smooth. Cover to keep warm, or gently reheat before serving.
Yield: 4 cups
Caramelized Onions:8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter
2 pounds yellow onions, peeled and thinly sliced
Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onions, reduce the heat to medium-low, and cook slowly, stirring occasionally, until golden brown and caramelized, 45 minutes to 1 hour. Remove from the heat and serve hot.
Cooking Diaries of a Mom 