Pork Chops and Brussels Sprouts, after P. Franey

In my fantasies, I have nothing but money and time. I spend my days with my wife and son, cooking and eating, reading and listening to records. In reality, I have no money and no time. Our weeknight dinners are not the place for slow-cooked stews or long-simmered sauces(unless they're leftover). For this reason, the cookbook in the kitchen whose spine is most broken, whose pages are the most grease soaked, is Pierre Franey's The Sixty Minute Gourmet.

Surely, there are plenty of places to criticize this book. For example, no one really needs 8 printed recipes for pan-fried steak. For me, the brilliance of the book is in its arrangement. (I assume this is the same arrangement that the New York Times column which begat this collection was presented in.) Each recipe for a 'main course' is presented with a vegetable and/or a starch preparation on the facing page. In this way, the mind can fight off the flesh's base desire for takeout.

As I was leaving work this evening, I called to see if dinner had already crystallized into a plan. It had not, I suggested pork chops and was told to do something interesting with them. And so: Pork Chops with Onion and Caraway seed, with roasted Brussels Sprouts, an homage to Pierre Franey.

4 bone in pork chops, not too thin
3 medium onions
2 tbsp caraway seeds
2 tsp fennel seeds
1/2 c. apple cider vinegar
salt
pepper
peanut oil

1.5 lbs. brussels sprouts
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 c. olive oil
salt
pepper

Halve (or quarter, depending on your patience level) the sprouts lengthwise, toss with the garlic and enough oil to coat, spread on a roasting pan and put in a 375 degree oven for about 25 minutes, until things look roasted.

Slice onions in half lengthwise, then, perpendicular to the first cut, into semicircular pieces. Salt and pepper the meat, fry the chops in some peanut oil until nicely browned, about 3 minutes a side. Take the chops out, put the onions in. Salt the onions lightly, add the fennel and caraway seeds. Fry the onions for 8 minutes or so, until some of the thinner slices start to brown. Add the vinegar, scrape the pan for deliciousness's sake, then return the chops to the pan with any accumulated run off. Pull the sprouts out of the oven, serve everything at once.

I meant to eat my chop with some mustard, but it was gone before I remembered. There's always next time.

You brought back quite a memory there. When the husband and I first got married, the "Sixty Minute Gourmet" books ruled my kitchen. We were both working and after a long day these recipes always hit the spot. I loved that he gave you ideas for accompaniments as well. In my early days of cooking that was a great help in developing a sense of taste as to what went with what.

Even though I'm at home with the kids now and have the luxury of starting dinner whenever I want, I have to dig out those books and take another look at them.

U,

Thanks for the recipes -- I think I'll make this meal in the very near future, perhaps, though, with the addition of some spätzle on the side... and a glass of good beer or Riesling... and mustard!

I don't know Franey or the books you and Kwe730 mention; I'm curious to take a look at them.

Antonius

The Franey 60 minutes books, of which there are two or three, are compilations of (or at least based on) a recipe column (called, not surprisingly, The 60 Minute Gormet) he used to publish in the New York Times. I, too, learned most of my cooking chops from recipes in those books. They reflect a stripped down version of basic French cooking. Today, Jacques Pepin reminds me of some of Franey's stuff. I cooked my first meal for a special date from a Franey book, and 25 years later we're still together.

Jonah

A-

Glad you like the sound of this, I liked the taste. I drank a Samuel Smith Nut Brown ale, my wife had a Dr. Brown's Diet Black Cherry soda and my son had milk. Everyone was pleased with their pairings; but next time I may look for some Spaten Optimator, or some other bock.

Hi,

I made bone-in pork chops roughly to to the recipe in the original post.

Some changes I made:
- I brined the pork chops in 3 tablespoons salt to 1.5 quarts water for an hour (or 30 minutes more than Cook's Illustrated would advise, but I was busy)
- When I removed the pork chops, I put them on a plate in a heated 175 degree F oven. I wasn't quite convinced 4 minutes on each side would adequately cook these 1-inch-plus pork chops. I felt the warming oven would help nurture them along.
- I skipped the seeds in the final sauce

These were very tender pork chops served with mashed potatoes and green salad.

Regards,