Porkchops with Mushroom Bourbon Cream Sauce
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This recipe is from my father's recipe collection (cut out from magazines - can't tell which one this is from). The whisky and the basil add nice touches to the mushroom cream sauce. My mother and I cooked this for my father tonight; we followed dad's recipe to the letter, which included baking the pork in the oven at 400°F for 10 minutes after browning it for 4 minutes on each side on the stove-top. The cuts we had were bigger than what the recipe called for and still the meat was on the dry side (therefore we've reduced the time needed in the following recipe). Dad likes his pork well-done and we like our pork still a little pink (and tender). What is important is the internal temperature of the meat, to kill any pathogens. But even that temperature seems to be up for debate. The California Uniform Retail Food Facilities Law calls for pork to be cooked to an internal temp of 145°F, the USDA recommends 160°F. If you cook your pork to 160, it will end up tasting like shoe leather. We generally take it off the heat at 140.
Porkchops with Mushroom Bourbon Cream Sauce Recipe
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Ingredients
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 lb button mushrooms, sliced
1/4 cup chopped onions
2 large garlic cloves, chopped
1/2 cup dry white wine
1 cup chicken stock
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup bourbon whisky
Salt and pepper
1 large egg
2 Tbsp water
4 6-7 oz center-cut pork chops
All purpose flour
2 cups fresh bread crumbs
3 Tbsp olive oil or grapeseed oil
2 Tbsp minced fresh basil
Method
1 Prepare the sauce. Sauté onions, garlic, and mushrooms in 2 Tbsp of olive oil in a large skillet on medium high heat until the mushrooms are browned - about 15 minutes. Add the wine and boil down until the liquid is reduced to almost a glaze, about 4 minutes. Add the chicken stock, cream, and bourbon. Simmer until the sauce thickens, about 12 minutes.
2 Prepare the pork. Whisk an egg and 2 Tbsp of water in a shallow baking dish. Sprinkle both sides of pork chops with salt and pepper. Dip chops into the flour, then egg mixture, then breadcrumbs, coating completely. Heat olive or grapeseed oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the pork chops and cook until brown, about 4 minutes per side. Turn the chops one more time and lower the heat to med-low and cook an additional 5-8 minutes, until the internal temperature of the chop is at 140°F. Alternatively you can put the chops in a pre-heated oven at 400°F for 5-8 more minutes.
3 When about to serve the pork, bring the sauce to a simmer and add the chopped basil to it. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
Serves 4.
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And to add to the debate, Epicurious says that to kill trichinosis (which hasn't been seen in the US for decades according to a chef friend), pork should be cooked to 137F but for margin of error with thermometers, most recipes now recommend 150F – 165F. And Cook's Illustrated says no higher than 140F.
Great post, thanks. Your Dad's collection is a treasure!