Last weekend the husband and I picked up some smoked pork chops from Manchester’s Castlefield Market. Keen to try something new with them I found a recipe for a raisin sauce where you soak the raisins in water for 24 hours before cooking. I didn’t have any raisins in, but I did have a tin of prunes languishing at the back of the cupboard, and I do believe whisky trumps water any day of the week.
Ingredients
2 x bacon chops
1/2 tin prunes
A good glug of whisky
15g/½oz butter
1 fat garlic clove, crushed
60ml/2½fl oz ruby port
1/2 small onion
10g plain flour
Preparation
Soak the prunes in the whisky overnight. Chop and de-stone. Heat the butter over a low heat in a frying pan. Chop and add the onion and garlic and gently cook until soft. Add the flour, then slowly pour in the port, letting it sizzle and reduce slightly. Add the prunes and warm through. I also added some of the whisky into the sauce. Waste not want not.
Preheat a ribbed griddle pan, brush the chops with a little oil and grill for about 2-3 minutes on each side. Be careful not to over cook. Serve with some mash.
Serves two.
Verdict
The secret to this dish is the quality of the chops, which were superb. The sauce was also a roaring success. 8 1/2 out of ten from both of us.