Autumn Breaded Pork Scaloppini Recipe
We fixed this simple dish back in October in order to use up the last of a package of boneless pork chops, but it is a perfect meal for any time in autumn or winter. In fact, late autumn and winter always put my husband in the mood to eat pork-which isn't surprising, considering his Southern Appalachian heritage. He says, as I quoted earlier:
"In the Appalachians, late fall was the time when a hog was strung up and slaughtered, its fat rendered into lard, and the meat cured for storage over the winter. It's little surprise that pig goes so well with the robust, sweet, and smoky flavors of autumn and winter."
This recipe is intended to prepare a thin slice of breaded pork that can go with a wide variety of sweet sauces. This time we served it with our Autumn Stew (click here for the recipe), but it would go equally well with baked apples or simmered in some peach salsa. The breading alone has a light, slightly spicy and exotic flavor.
Autumn Pork Scaloppini Recipe
serves one
Ingredients:
- 1 boneless pork chop
- 1 egg
- 4 tablespoons milk
- 1/2 cup corn meal
- 1 teaspoon seasoned salt
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon cocoa powder
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- vegetable or canola oil for frying
Preparation Instructions:
1. Mix the corn meal and spices in a shallow plate or dish, making sure there are no clumps.
2. Thinly butterfly the boneless pork chop (to do this, simply cut the pork chop horizontally, which makes it into two thin slices that are still attached to one another on one side).
3. In a separate bowl, beat the egg and mix in the milk. Coat the pork chop with this wet mixture (this is the "drench").
4. Remove the drenched pork chop from the wet mixture and place it into the breading mixture (the "dredge"), patting it and turning it to ensure that it gets coated evenly on all sides. If you want a thicker layer of breading, drench and dredge the meat a second time.
5. Fill a frying pan with one-half to three-quarters inch of vegetable or canola oil and heat it to just under medium-high heat. When a bit of the dredge sizzles when you toss it in, the oil is ready.
6. Fry the pork until the breading on the underside browns, then flip it. With a thin slice this should happen fairly quickly-no more than four to five minutes on a side.
7. Once the pork is fried, simmer it in a sauce of your choice or serve it topped with your sauce.
