Now that we’ve reached the middle of the summer, some people seem to be enjoying the hot days on vacation and others are relaxing next to the pool.  On the other hand, I’ve been busy trying to keep up with the all of the daytime activities of summer.  Coming from a large family, I often find myself being pulled between helping my younger siblings with 4-H projects, trying to catch up with friends and surviving the necessary chores that come along with wedding season.  I’m sure most of you can relate to this hectic lifestyle, which makes cooking seem like a challenge for all of us pork lovers.  I was beginning to forget what it was like to sit down for a nice juicy piece of pork, so enough was enough; this weekend I discarded some of my more cumbersome tasks and took a little “me time” to enjoy a delicious meal…starring pork!

Not only was I determined to cook myself a good summertime meal, I found a delicious recipe at porkbeinspired.com that took less than an hour to prepare!  When I saw the positive ratings the recipe received from viewers, I decided to grill up a delicious pair of Bacon-Wrapped Pork Chops.  No kidding, this recipe certainly deserved its high reviews!  After cooking it to 145⁰ and adding the Garlic-Mustard Butter for taste, it was like “pork chop heaven!”  This easily falls into my list of all-time favorite ways to enjoy pork chops, plus, it only took me forty minutes to prepare from start to finish!  Considering that I have never been known for being a speedy chef, this was quite a feat for me.  Give it a try, and then let us know what you think of it!

Bacon-Wrapped Pork Chops With Seasoned Butter

My new favorite pork chop recipe

Do you have a favorite summertime recipe?  We’d love to hear about it!

A few weeks ago I went to help the Ohio Pork Producers at the Taste of Elegance.  The Taste of Elegance is a food competition like the Iron Chef America but in downtown Columbus!

The secret ingredient for this cuisine showdown was pork of course!  There were some absolutely gorgeous and delicious dishes prepared by the chefs.

Delicious pork dish created by our contestants

Our judges and winners of the night!

Congratulations to our winners!

Chef Par Excellence: Chef Todd McDunn of Lakeview Café at the Scotts Co.

Superior Chef: Chef Dave MacLennan of Latitude 41

Premier Chef & People’s Choice Award: Chef Michael Delligatta of Michael Anthony’s at the Inn in Versailles

Participants:  Chef Tim Franks of Flavorseal

                        Chef Scott Pierce of the Refectory

                        Chef Michael Thompson of The Hideaway Inn

To see more pictures take a look at Ohio Hog Farmers on Facebook!

P.S. I tried to get all the leftover pork from the competition and it was all gone because it was so delicious!

P.P.S. Since the pork was quickly devoured, there was a lot of cupcakes left.  I did manage to walk out with around 20 cupcakes so I didn’t walk away empty handed

Catch up on my story!

I.   Introducing Jamie

II. Cooking Attempt Number One

Let us begin where we left off.  Introducing pork into my cooking repertoire!

Using the America’s favorite pork chop recipe from the Super Pork Recipes guide distributed by OPPC, I made eight pork chops, which I marinated for 30 minutes in reduced-fat Italian dressing. Yes, it is a children’s recipe guide, but don’t judge.

After marinating, I used a little of Lawry’s seasoning salt and grilled until the chops reached an internal temperature of 160 degrees. I combined the chops with my first attempt at green bean casserole, which was so easy I’m slightly mortified I had to Google a recipe for it! I also grabbed a dozen ears of amazing, Ohio sweet corn, which was so good it’s slightly ridiculous.

Despite the fact that my entire family left the house at the mention that I was cooking dinner, all did eventually return and sample supper. Only after I tried a bite myself to assure food quality and safety levels to all parties. Everyone lived to tell about the meal, their stomachs are still intact and even though they’d never admit enjoying it, everyone had seconds…

I survived marinated pork chops on the grill, so obviously you can too! It’s time to get grilling. Use this simple and tasty recipe to cook for your family tonight and check out other great pork chop cooking tips in this guide.  Love to hear back about how it works out for you! Oh and be sure to check back for how my round two of pork cooking went, where I insanely tried TWO different recipes!

–JJ

Learn more about this recipe here!

Ingredients:
-4 pork chops
-3/4 cup Italian dressing (or use a reduced-fat Italian dressing)
-1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

Cooking directions:
Serves 4. Place all ingredients in a self-sealing bag; seal bag and place in refrigerator for at least 20 minutes (or as long as overnight). Remove chops from bag, discarding marinade and grill over a medium-hot fire, turning once, until just done, about 8 to 11 minutes total cooking time.

Nutrition facts:
Calories: 210
Cholesterol: 60 mg
Protein: 25 grams
Saturated fat: 3 grams
Fat: 11 grams

What’s your favorite marinade or rub?

Today we would like to take a few moments to salute television’s biggest fan of bacon and everything else pork, Homer J. Simpson.

Ok, so he doesn’t know that pork comes from pigs, but he sure has eaten a lot of it and is quite possibly responsible for keeping all of Springfield’s invisible hog farmers afloat. And since so many pork lovers tune in to watch their kindred spirit, we’re pretty sure Homer’s eating habits are the reason for the show’s success.

Since Homer doesn’t know the most basic thing about pigs and pork (one becomes the other) we’re guessing he’s not up on other facts of modern hog farming either. Like how pigs are raised in state of the art barns that provide a stable climate year round and protection from predators and disease, or that they eat feed that has been specially formulated to meet their needs at every stage of growth. He probably also missed the memo announcing that pork is leaner than ever and that pork tenderloin is just as lean as skinless chicken breast. But we can forgive him for not knowing all that as long as he remembers farmers are doing what’s best and keeps right on eating pork!

So, Homer keep baconing up your sausage, ordering your smiley-face breakfasts with bacon noses, bacon hair, bacon mustaches, five o’clock shadows made of bacon bits and bacon bodies, and enjoying the wonderful, magical animal that gives you pork, bacon and ham, and we’ll keep watching your show for another 20 years.

Today is the most important day of the year. It is a day to stay home from work. It is a day of celebrating with family and friends. It is bigger than Thanksgiving and Christmas and New Year’s and the Fourth of July combined. It is a day to honor the reason there can be delicious bacon and pork chops and swine inspired doo-dads and even a nation of Porktastic. My fellow Porktasticans prepare yourselves because today is National Pig Day.

My friends, we will be grilling, baking and slow roasting all of our favorite forms of pork throughout the day, not to mention watching our favorite famous pigs like Babe, Porky, Gordy and Miss Piggy. So come party with us! We’ll be easy to spot since we’ll be the ones decked out head-to-toe in true pig style – nose, ears and of course curly-q tail.

But, if for some crazy reason your boss won’t let you off to celebrate this holiday of holidays, we have a few ideas to help you take the party to work with you:

1. Choose your favorite pig tie or jewelry to commemorate the day.
2. Hang a string of pig lights around your office or cubicle.
3. Grill up some pork loin chops and bring enough to share with your coworkers, remembering they want to be home celebrating just as much as you.
4. Get a pig piñata filled with bacon candy.
5. Wear your favorite pig inspired tee underneath a button-up dress shirt. When everyone complains about missing Pig Day rip your top shirt off like Clark Kent and set up a completely awesome celebration of pigs and pork.

Have a Porktastic day holiday and be sure to tell us how you celebrated National Pig Day by emailing stories or pics of your celebration to Mr.Oinkers@gmail.com.

Often times standing in front of the meat counter in the grocery store is like going to a family party…

The pork chop you see behind the meat counter would probably suit Great Uncle Vern*, a true gentlemen.  Both of them are classy and never go out of style.  And there’s the pork tenderloin, which would invoke the appreciation of Cousin John, the one that runs marathons and always shows up everywhere in jogging shorts and a sweatband.  The tenderloin is just as lean as a skinless chicken breast and so is Cousin John.  Of course there’s Aunt Patty, the one you’ve never seen not wear a woolen sweater and horn rim glasses, but goes to the X games every year and you swear you’ve seen a tattoo of Leonard Skinner on her ankle!  A usual combination, much like our Pork [and apple] Pie a la Mode.

Hmmm, not only are we really hungry after thinking about this but we’ve decided that our family is absolutely Porktastic, what about yours?

*Names have been changed to protect them from the pork enthusiast!

Pizza delivery: 30 minutes.

Porktastically grilled pork chops: 10 minutes.

Hang up the phone, light the grill.

We’ve seen this scenario time and time again: You’re hungry.  You don’t have a lot of time to prepare a meal. You’re capable of lighting the grill.

That means you’re half way to flavor country…so let us reacquaint you with the joys of the versatile and always pleasing pork chop.

Unless you fall asleep at the grill and incinerate your chops, we find it nearly impossible to ruin this fine slab of meat. You’ll quickly discover that your chops can take on many different flavors and adapt to various cuisines by doctoring them with a cornucopia of spices or marinades. This is where we could go on and on about the many flavorful approaches you can take. Curry. Soy Sauce. Pesto. Citrus. Pepper. Mustard. Molasses. Herbs. Spices. Ketchup. Barbeque or Worcestershire sauce. Take your pick or create your own concoction. They all can contribute to making a glaze, sauce or marinade to fit your specific taste. We’ll focus on some delicious marinades soon.

Grilled Pork Chops 101.

Here are the basics to becoming Chop Master of the grill, followed by some really simple instructions:

• Preheat grill to medium-high heat
• Apply 6-ounce chops (approximately 1-inch thick) to the grill
• Grill chops on each side for approximately 3-5 minutes
• Grill until chops reach an internal temperature of  145 degrees F.
• Remove. Garnish. Eat.

That’s how easy it is to grill delicious, juicy pork chops – and it doesn’t matter if you choose center cut or boneless chops.

Now that you’ve got the basics down pat, experiment with spices, sauces and marinades and continue to apply as you grill (never mind what your mother said, we give you full permission to play with your food). If you plan ahead, your taste buds with thank you for allowing those chops to baste in a marinade for few hours or overnight in the fridge.

NOTE:  Baking pork chops will take significantly longer based on oven temperature. Expect cooking time up to an hour in a 350-degree oven.