Stuffed Pork Chops with Mashed Potatoes & Gravy

Those of you who know who Donnie Baker is know he has an infatuation with pork.  If you don’t know who Donnie Baker is, you must immediately go to this website… www.shutuprandy.com.   I, too, am starting to have a thing for pork.  You can do so many different things with it.  Barbeque it, roast it, boil it. The possibilities are endless. 

Today I will be introducing you to what is possibly my favorite rendition of the other white meat.  Stuffed pork chops.  At first I thought it sounded a little less than desirable.  The key is to find the perfect stuffing.  You can experiment with different types of stuffing if you’d like.  I’m here to tell you that I have found the perfect stuffing for my personal tastes - Stove Top pork stuffing.  It has the perfect amount of herbs and spices to add just enough flare to any old bland pork loin.  Now, the trick is to pair it with something amazing.  Most dudes will tell you that meat and potatoes are the way to any red blooded American’s heart.  That’s why I recommend you pair this with skin-on mashed potatoes and pork gravy.

Donnie Baker’s Three Way Stuffed Pork Chops

Ingredients:

·         Pork loin (sword of the pork)

·         3 Tbsp. olive oil

·         Seasoning salt (as needed)

·         1 box Stove Top pork flavored stuffing

·         Tin foil

·         3 tbsp butter

·         Milk or cream, room temperature (enough to make potatoes fluffy)

·         4 large sized Idaho potatoes

·         1 package pork gravy packet

First things first, place the potatoes in a pot on the stove with water covering the tops.  Turn on heat to high.  (Do not cut potatoes before you boil them.  Boil with skin on as a whole.  You will get a much better finished product).  This will take about 40 to 50 minutes.  Don’t mess with them; let the water do the work.  You'll also want to line a baking pan or dish with foil at this time.

Next, cut the pork loin into at least 2”-thick chops (if you don’t want to, the butcher will).   Then take the cut pork chops and slit them down the side to create a pocket for stuffing.  Lightly season one side of the pork with seasoning salt.  Put the olive oil in a sauté pan.  Heat on high.  You’ll only want to do one chop at a time.  They go fast.  When the pan is very hot, put the chop seasoning side down in the pan to sear in the juices.  Brown the chop on each side for 30 seconds; while you brown the pre-seasoned side of the chop, lightly season the other side.  When the sides have both been seared pull them out and put them on the foil-lined baking pan/dish. 

Let the meat rest for at least 5 minutes.  This will give you time to make the stuffing.  Follow the instructions on the box.  This should take less than 5 minutes.  Take the stuffing and pack it into the pork chop via the slit down the side.  Completely wrap the chops in some more foil.  Place them in the oven at 375 degrees for 30 to 40 minutes.  The foil wrapping will keep the chops very moist. 

Next step, make the gravy.  With about 10 minutes left in the cooking process, mix up your gravy packet.  Follow the directions on the packet.

Finally, mash the potatoes, skin on, with butter and milk.  Take the pork chops out of the foil.  Be careful, they are hot.  Watch out for steam.  Plate everything up.  Pour the gravy on the potatoes and stuffed chops.  Enjoy.

* * * 

I did learn something new while making this.  Dogs love pork.  Just as I was about to pack the leftovers for my lunch the next day, I looked at the table and the plates were empty.  Apparently our dog helped herself to my future lunch.  She ate three stuffed pork chops and about three servings of mashed potatoes and gravy.  While I was mad, I definitely couldn’t blame her. 

It was a delicious disaster.

-Beau out