My life has been wrought full of changes recently. I have graduated from college, bought a house, started a full time job, committed to a graduate degree, and made some personal decisions that were hard to follow through with. (Very somber beginning to a blog post I know - how very uncharacteristic of me.) However, I say all this as it reminds me of the things that are a very basic part of who I am as a person. My grandmother, Granny Goose, just departed from coming to visit my family and during the trip we had a lot of fun together, shared some burns (more on that later), and did some truly amazing cooking.
I realize that many of you may not have had the opportunity that I was blessed with growing up: to be surrounded by truly amazing Southern cooks who just knew how to turn anything they touched into fried gold. As such, I feel that it is my duty to pass on the knowledge that I've gleaned from watching them work their magic over the years! So this is my second installment to my Southern Summer series and it is quite a classic!
This is somewhere in between a recipe and a tutorial because frying is a pretty basic technique that can be applied to any food! Once you get the hang of it, it will be a great addition to your repertoire. Don't be scared by the fact that this dish is fried. Frying gets a really bad wrap! No, you shouldn't fry everything that enters your body but using it in moderation is not a problem.
As you can see Granny Goose and I enjoyed an amazing meal of the crunchy fried pork chops, fried summer squash and okra, corn on the cob, boiled potatoes, and refrigerator pickles. Hush, everyone needs a comfort food pig out meal every once in a while!
- Take all of these measurements as a basic, if you think you need more flour or seasoning - follow your intuition.
- Cream Gravy from scratch is scary to many people, don't let it be scary - it is so easy! Keep the drippings and flour proportion equivalent, add in a small amount of milk, stir for a while, if you need to adjust the consistency add more milk or flour (only if you're really desperate). Be aware that your gravy will thicken quite a bit once you remove it from the heat, gravy glue can be formed this way!
Fried Pork Chops
4-6 any cut pork chops
1 c. buttermilk (optional)
1 c. flour
1 t. salt
1 t. pepper
1/2 t. Cavender's
1/2 c. Canola or Vegetable Oil
Rinse the pork chops, to provide the meat with extra moisture so that the flour will stick. In a shallow bowl or on a plate, mix the seasonings and flour.
If using buttermilk, dip sides of the chop in the milk and then heavily dredge the chop in the flour mixture. If not using buttermilk, simply dredge both sides of the chop in the flour and set them aside on a plate.
Pour the oil into a large skillet and let the oil heat up on medium heat. Once the oil begins to shimmer or a drop of water sizzles when it hits the surface, arrange as many chops in the pan as you can without crowding the pan. Cook 4-6 minutes on each side, until the outside is golden brown.
Remove the finished chops from the pan and let it drain on a plate lined with several paper towels. Let rest for 5 minutes before serving.
2 T. pan drippings
2 T. flour
1 1/2 c. milk
Salt & Pepper to taste
In the same skillet from the fried pork chops, remove excess oil from the drippings but leave all of the chunks of breading - this is where the flavor lives!
Over medium heat, sprinkle the flour in and stir for a couple minutes until a thick, darker roux is formed.
Slowly whisk in the milk, be sure to stir out all of the clumps. Turn the heat down to low, be patient, and stir until the mixture thickens. Check seasoning and add salt or pepper as necessary.
Smother your gravy all over the fried pork chops and devour! Then repeat until you can't take another bite!
And then you take one bite...
And then you blink and it magically disappears...
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