Ingredients
1 Box of stove top stuffing Pork Flavor
4 two inch pork chops
2 tbs canola oil
1 box of chicken stock
1 Onion diced
2 Tbs butter
2 Tbs Garlic bread seasoning
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
1 small jar of capers
¼ cup of vodka
¼ cup of light beer
2 tbs lemon juice
Cornstarch or carb quick slurry for thickening
optional – 1/4 cup heavy cream
Directions:
Prepare stuffing according to box directions and set aside.
Split the pork chops along the edge to make a pocket and stuff the stuffing mix inside
Season the stuffed chops generously with salt and pepper.
Brown the pork chops on each side quickly on a grill, in a cast iron pan or a non-stick saute pan. They will not be fully cooked, you will finish cooking in oven.
Once browned place in a casserole dish and cover with foil.
Place into a 350F oven while you make the sauce.
Place Butter in a deep saute pan and add the onion, stirring and cooking until onions are translucent.
Add 3 ½ cups of chicken stock, seasoning, salt, pepper, capers with the juice, vodka and beer, stirring to combine.
Bring to a boil
Use remaining ½ cup of the chicken stock and mix with 2 tbs corn starch to create a slurry.
Add the slurry to the boiling sauce and cook until thickened to your preference.
Stir in lemon juice just before serving and add cream if using
Remove pork chops from oven when internal temp reaches 160F
Let rest in pan 5 mins
Serve covered with the sauce
Options:
I prefer to use boneless pork loin and cut it up into “chops” myself but you can use any regular bone in chops as well. Just make sure you have a thick enough cut to make a pocket. You can also use any other stuffing you like, or stuff with chopped veggies and cheese instead of stuffing. For the sauce, you can also add chopped garlic. If the sauce gets too thick, you can add more beer or stock to thin it out to the right consistency.
The Story:
This recipe is a serious comfort food for me. I was actually inspired to make it by seeing a recipe for Chicken Picatta. The Twig sauce is a riff on picatta sauce which usually has white wine, capers, butter and lemon juice. However, while cooking during a camping trip I forgot the wine and so had to use what I had on hand, aka vodka and beer. It ended up being licked off the plates it was so good. I added the additional garlic seasoning to amp up the flavor and a new favorite sauce was born.