Single Guy Cooking: Pork Chop Saltimbocca Senza Prosciutto con Sautéed Spinache

I’ve eaten a lot of great pork chops in gourmet restaurants– double cut, moist, and charred to perfection. However, pork chops are something I haven’t eaten at home since a kid (when my mother would lightly fry them or bake them in a homemade chutney sauce). And I certainly didn’t cook too many of them in college considering I lived with three partially Kosher jewish guys – who did not restrict my cooking but since we always cooked great meals together, pork chops were not even close to making the menu.

So, getting off work late the other day, I headed to grocery store. I wanted to keep it simple – browsing the meat and seafood aisle for a main ingredient – chicken breast, steak, salmon? I’ve done it all so many times. Then I spotted three inch thick bone-in pork chops - at only $4. They looked good raw, who knows how they’d turn out after I was done with ‘em.

This dish is of Italian origin, it is typically stuffed with prosciutto (I opted not to); however, I did add a generous amount mention buttery Fontina and fresh sage chopped from my windowsill herb garden.

Ingredients:

2 (1-inch-thick) center-cut rib pork chops (make sure they are thick enough)
2 sage leaves, chopped up
2 or 4 slices of Italian Fontina – I bought a packaged Fontina at the store. Very unique flavor.
Optional: 2 thin slices prosciutto (1 ounce)
Olive Oil
1 large garlic clove, or more if prefer, finely chopped
1 (10-ounce) bag fresh spinach, stems discarded (spinach really cooks down!)
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 450°F with rack in middle
Cut a deep, wide pocket in each pork chop.

2. Sprinkle half of sage into each pocket then stuff pockets generously with cheese and prosciutto. I stuffed them pretty full such that the cheese was melting out.

3. Very important: Pat chops dry (allows for better searing experience and crust) and season with 1/4 tsp each of salt and pepper (total).

4. Heat 1 Tbsp oil in a 12-inch ovenproof heavy skillet or stainless steel pan over medium-high heat until it sizzlin’.

6. Cook chops until one side is golden, about 2 minutes (be careful not to overcook) then turn chops and transfer skillet to oven. Let it roast (and the cheese and prosciutto add flavor and moisture) until cooked through, about 5 minutes.

7. While chops cook, heat remaining more olive oil in a pan or small pot over medium heat.
8. Add and sauté garlic until browned and softened, a couple minutes.

9. Add spinach and cook, covered or uncovered doesn’t matter to me, stirring occasionally, until wilted, about 3 to 5 minutes depending on how wilted you want it. Season with salt.