Nicaraguan Pork Chops

My husband has been craving Nicaraguan food for a while now. Particularly nacatamales - these elaborate concoction with potatoes, meat, olives and a whole buch of other things stuffed in a corn meal base wrapped in banana leaves and steamed. I helped his mom make these once - and it took 4 people 3 days to make a batch. There was no way I was going to even begin to attempt making a nacatamal. I promised we'll find some when we go to Miami. We had plans for Miami coming up but I couldn't find a Nicaraguan restaurant around where we were going to be. When we got there we decided to "wing-it" and walked around Calle Ocho looking for a Cuban place (as a compromise). Serendipitously got caught in the rain - across the street from a Nicaraguan restaurant! Imagine that. When you want something really badly, the universe makes it happen. (I'm reading The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho, it has definitely had an affect on me!)

My husband got his nacatamal and it was glorious. He also ordered the Nicaraguan style pork chops. This plate was massive. We could have easily done with just one entree. 2 giant, tender, juicy pork chops smothered in sauteed onions with a side of rice and beans, tostones (fried plantains) and salad. Yuma-dum-dum! I wanted to put aside my own entree and eat his. I just had to taste it so I could reproduce it again in my own kitchen. The onions were key. So here I am, a month later, trying to figure out this chop.

I have a very unique ability to take an awesome piece of steak - and ruin it. I either over cook it, or under cook it. So its either dry or raw. Which is why I like the slow cooked pork recipes. They're hard to mess up. So cooking a chop is always challenge for me. I figured I needed more than intuition on this one - I need a meat thermometer!

I went with a bone-in pork shoulder steak, instead of a pork chop. It looked bigger and thinner (and more do-able) than the bone-in chops. And I definitely wanted the bone, to add to the juicyness.

Wash, pat dry and salt and pepper the steak liberally. Meanwhile heat a pan on high (make sure your exhaust is on!) Lightly oil the pan, and place the steaks in the hot pan. Let them sear on each side - do not move them for at least 4-5 mins. Flip over and sear the other side. I checked the temperature and they were at about 130º - not safe to eat! Pork needs to be at least 160º. Once seared the pork goes into the oven at 375º for about 20 mins. Keep checking the temp, and remove from the oven when it reads 155º and loosely cover with foil. The residual heat will carry over to 160º.  (BTW - I don't know why I never owned a meat thermometer before! Those things are steak-savers!)

Meanwhile slice onions, lots and lots of onions. Start caramelizing them on slow heat. I added a thinly sliced jalapeno into the onions for an extra kick. Add a little salt to draw out the moisture. You want the onions to be a golden brown - not dark brown.

For sides, I made rice and beans. Warmed up some frozen tostones in the oven - not the best, but better than none. Also chopped yup some heirloom tomatoes to cool it all down.

Top the steaks with the onions. Serve with the rice and tostones and salad. Then imagine yourself in Nicaragua as you slice into your tender and perfectly done pork. The onions bring a sweetness to the pork, while the pepper gives it a bite. Enjoy!