Boneless Pork Loin Chops With Vietnamese Flavors
Prep Time: 70 minutes (50 inactive)
Cook time: 20 minutes
This boneless pork chop dish was inspired by a course I had at a beer dinner with a friend. We were served thin slices of pork collar in this sauce that had a lot of Vietnamese flavors - lime juice, soy sauce, fish sauce, cilantro and ginger. It was kind of sweet, kind of spicy, kind of acidic and a total flavor bomb. That was over two years ago. I tried to recreate it at home a few days later but I failed to write down what a did. A few months ago, I decided to was time to make this again and make it worthy of a recipe post. I also promised the friend that I dined with that I would send him a recipe for making that over a year ago. Heck, I told him I would post this yesterday and I was even late on that.
What I love about this recipe is the sauce. Spicy, sweet, funky, acidic. The red onions and serrano slices get pickled, and the flavor of these pickled elements amplifies the flavor. Throw in lime juice and fresh cilantro and I am in heaven. I had leftover pork, but no leftover sauce because I kept snacking on it.throughout the night. If spicy is not your thing, however, check out the “servings/suggestions” section below fo reducing the heat.
If you have seen boneless whole pork loin in the butcher case, we are using pork loin that is just sliced into chops somewhere between 1/2 inch and 1 inch thick. The cooking time will obviously vary depending on the thickness. If this your first time cooking a boneless pork loin chop, I would recommend cooking one by itself as a test to determine cooking time, Then cook the rest of them based on that cooking time. This is, of course, assuming your pork chops are all of uniform thickness. Oh, pork isn’t your thing? Please, just make the sauce and put it on chicken, been, fish, tofu, mushrooms, etc. Trust me.
Special Equipment
I prefer to cook the pork in a cast iron skillet
This is the knife I normally use in my kitchen
Servings/Suggestions
If you can’t stand heat, there are two options
Omit the serrano peppers entirely from the sauce
Slice the serrano peppers lengthwise and use a spoon to scrape out the seeds and the white part. Then slice thinly and add the the dressing.
If you want to make this a more filling meal, serve with rice
For grating the garlic and ginger, use your microplane
Don’t feel like cooking pork? Use the sauce on chicken, beef, mushrooms, tofu, etc.
When chopping the cilantro for the sauce, make sure to cut the stems into pretty small pieces
Ingredients
4 pork loin chops, boneless
2 Persian cucumbers
Lime juice, for finishing
Cilantro, for garnishing
For the marinade
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
1 tablespoon fish sauce
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon sambal
zest from 1 lime
1 garlic clove, grated
1/2” piece of ginger, peeled and grated
1 serrano pepper, quartered lengthwise
1 teaspoon grapeseed oil (or another neutral oil)
freshly ground black pepper
6 cilantro stalks (leaves and stems) roughly chopped
For the sauce
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
1 tablespoon fish sauce
2 tablespoons water
2 teaspoons sugar
1” piece of ginger, peeled and grated
1 clove of garlic, grated
1 serrano pepper, thinly sliced
thinly sliced red onion
(at least 1/4 of the onion and up to 1/2 of the onion)
juice from 1/2 of a lime
7 cilantro stalks (leaves and stems), finely chopped
Directions
Step 1
Combine all of the ingredients for the marinade in a small bowl. Mix well. Use a fork to poke holes all around the pork chops, including along the fatty side. Put the pork chops in a quart size (or large) ziploc bag. Add the marinade and rub the marinade into the pork chops. You will want to massage and move everything around a few times. Press as much air as you can out of the bag and seal. Place the sealed bag on a large plate or or bowl and refrigerate for 1 hour.
Step 2
After you put the pork chops in the refrigerator, it is time to make the sauce. In a small saucepan, add the rice vinegar, fish sauce, water, sugar, ginger, and garlic. Bring to a boil and stir. Add the serrano and red onion and cook for 1 minute. Add the lime juice, stir, and remove from heat. Once the sauce has cooled down, chop the cilantro and add it to the pork. I like to do this right before I take the pork chops out of the fridge.
Step 3
After the boneless pork loin chops have marinated in the refrigerator for 1 hour, remove them onto a plate line with paper towels. Use another paper towel to wipe off excess marinade on both sides. Heat up a skillet (I prefer cast iron for this) over medium heat. Once hot, add a bit of cooking oil and place the pork chops in the pan with the fatty side pointing out towards the sides of the pan. Cook for 4 minutes per side. Meanwhile, slice the cucumbers in half lengthwise and then cut into 1.5 inch pieces.
Step 4
When the pork chops are done, remove and let them rest on a plate or a cutting board for a least 5 minutes. During this time, add the cucumbers to the pan, cut side down. After 5 minutes, or once they start to get some nice color, remove from the pan. Drizzle with some lime juice and a sprinkle of salt.
Step 5
After the pork has rested for at least 5 minutes, thinly slice. Pour any juices from the cutting board and/or plate into the sauce and stir well. To serve, put the sliced pork and a piece or two of the cooked cucumber on the plate. Put our dressing on top of the pork. Garnish with some additional lime juice and some roughly torn cilantro.
BONELESS PORK LOIN CHOPS WITH VIETNAMESE FLAVORS
Ingredients
- 4 pork loin chops, boneless
- 2 Persian cucumbers
- Lime juice, for finishing
- Cilantro, for garnishing
- 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
- 1 tablespoon fish sauce
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon sambal
- zest from 1 lime
- 1 garlic clove, grated
- 1/2” piece of ginger, peeled and grated
- 1 serrano pepper, quartered lengthwise
- 1 teaspoon grapeseed oil (or another neutral oil)
- freshly ground black pepper
- 6 cilantro stalks (leaves and stems) roughly chopped
- 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
- 1 tablespoon fish sauce
- 2 tablespoons water
- 2 teaspoons sugar
- 1” piece of ginger, peeled and grated
- 1 clove of garlic, grated
- 1 serrano pepper, thinly sliced
- thinly sliced red onion (at least 1/4 of the onion)
- juice from 1/2 of a lime
- 7 cilantro stalks (leaves and stems), finely chopped
Instructions
- Combine all of the ingredients for the marinade in a small bowl. Mix well. Use a fork to poke holes all around the pork chops, including along the fatty side. Put the pork chops in a quart size (or large) ziploc bag. Add the marinade and rub the marinade into the pork chops. You will want to massage and move everything around a few times. Press as much air as you can out of the bag and seal. Place the sealed bag on a large plate or or bowl and refrigerate for 1 hour.
- After you put the pork chops in the refrigerator, it is time to make the sauce. In a small saucepan, add the rice vinegar, fish sauce, water, sugar, ginger, and garlic. Bring to a boil and stir. Add the serrano and red onion and cook for 1 minute. Add the lime juice, stir, and remove from heat. Once the sauce has cooled down, chop the cilantro and add it to the pork. I like to do this right before I take the pork chops out of the fridge.
- After the boneless pork loin chops have marinated in the refrigerator for 1 hour, remove them onto a plate line with paper towels. Use another paper towel to wipe off excess marinade on both sides. Heat up a skillet (I prefer cast iron for this) over medium heat. Once hot, add a bit of cooking oil and place the pork chops in the pan with the fatty side pointing out towards the sides of the pan. Cook for 4 minutes per side. Meanwhile, slice the cucumbers in half lengthwise and then cut into 1.5 inch pieces.
- When the pork chops are done, remove and let them rest on a plate or a cutting board for a least 5 minutes. During this time, add the cucumbers to the pan, cut side down. After 5 minutes, or once they start to get some nice color, remove from the pan. Drizzle with some lime juice and a sprinkle of salt.
- After the pork has rested for at least 5 minutes, thinly slice. Pour any juices from the cutting board and/or plate into the sauce and stir well. To serve, put the sliced pork and a piece or two of the cooked cucumber on the plate. Put our dressing on top of the pork. Garnish with some additional lime juice and some roughly torn cilantro.
Notes
Remember to check the web site for additional information
