Chimichurri Pork Chops

Notice the kitty in the background, I couldn't keep her off the table!

      Earlier this week I was feeling extra house wifey .  I got the whole day off and Mark had an early shift, he got off around 4:30.  That means I got to make a nice dinner and actually sit down and have it with my hubby (something new and exciting).  I thought I'd experiment a little bit and make Empanadas.  These are like little savory pies that are can be filled with lots of different things, seafood, shredded pork, beef or chicken, or vegetarian.

Looks good right? yea . . . not so much

      I will say now, that these little treats didn't work out as well as I had hoped.  I was quite unhappy in the end with the recipe I found for the dough.  It was a corn meal dough, and might have been good if it had been fried, but I was baking it, and it just didn't have a very nice texture when it was done.  I also didn't have enough (well any) moisture in my filling, so they didn't stay together very well. I made mine with black beans, corn, leeks, and a pablano pepper, next time I think I will maybe put some egg in it, or just do some more research and just stick with my more meaty options (since I'm a carnivore anyway).
      None-the-less I couldn't just have empanadas for dinner so I did make something else that ended up being quite delicious:  Pork Chops with Chimichurri Sauce.  Chimichurri is a traditional Argentinian condiment used as a marinade or a sauce for grilled meats.  It is very similar to a pesto, but it does not contain cheese or nuts.  There are many different variations of it, but this is what I made.
Into a food processor I put:

1 cup parsley
1 cup cilantro
5 cloves roasted garlic
1/4 tsp red chili flakes
1/4 cup olive oil
1 TBS lime juice (or if you don't have it some cider vinegar)
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/4 tsp fresh ground pepper 
and processed them until it formed a relatively smooth paste.   Set this aside while you prepare the pork.
      In case you haven't figured this out about me yet, I don't really ascribe to the quick and easy meals solution, I of course have these things that I make that can be done in a very short period of time, but I believe in slow food, the more time and love you put into a meal the better it is going to taste, forethought and preparation is the key to an excellent meal.   I always like to brine my pork because it makes it more moist, a simple brine will do in this case because you are also going to marinate it.
1/4 cup salt
2 TBS honey
5 peppercorns
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 bay leaf
1 cup hot water
mix all the ingredients together and let sit for at least 5 min before adding
2 cups ice cubes
then into the brine go your pork chops.  I used about 1 inch thick center cut chops for this project you should be able to fit at least 4 chops in the brine.  Let them brine for at least 2 hours, but not more than overnight, they will get too salty if you let them sit in the brine for too long (plus you are going to put them in marinade later, so a short brine time won't hurt it)  Once it comes out of the brine season it with a little salt and fresh ground pepper then rub a little bit of chimichurri over each one and put them in a bag with as much air removed as you can squeeze out.  Let this sit for at least an hour before grilling.
      Now I'm a big fan of charcoal grilling, so I used hickory briquettes for this project, but if you only have a gas grill you can still get some of that smokey flavor by putting a pouch of soaked wood chips in your grill to smoke and keeping the lid shut as you are cooking.  When your grill is ready to go, remove the chops from the bag, but don't wipe they off or anything, put them straight on the grill and cook for 6-8 minutes per side depending on how well done you like your pork. 

       When it's done let it rest, slice it and spoon a bit more of the sauce over the top.  Serve with your favorite side, (maybe I'll find a good recipe for empanadas soon!) This wold be excellent with sweet potatoes (not the sugary ones, more spicy and nutty flavors) rice, beans or even to top a simple salad.  Hope you get to share this for a special meal soon!