Recipe: Asian Spiced Citrus Pork Chops

Picked up some lovely Pork Chops at this awesome Cold Storage Meat supplier (Icy Pik) that I've found in Ahmedabad. The chops weren't completely frozen yet, so I decided to marinate them immediately, even though I wasn't planning to cook them until 2 days later.

I'd just had guests over and there was some orange juice left in the tetrapak. We had, had pizza the previous night, so some of those toppings were leftover. So I just threw together some of these ingredients into the marinade and the chops tasted really good. They were so soft, they literally melted in our mouths.The husband and me finished almost a kilo of these chops in 1 sitting! - and he's not a "Meat" devourer like me :)

I hadn't originally planned to post this recipe on this blog, since it was thrown together with what was on hand, so I didnt take pictures until the finished product was smelling so good. 

The flavour in this marinade is subtle, so it may not work well on stronger flavoured meats like lamb or mutton, but you could use it for fish or chicken, adjusting quantities accordingly.

Ingredients:
1kg Pork Chops
1 - 1.5 cups orange juice (I used Tropicana - this doesn't have the bitter after taste or the pulp that American OJ does)
Juice of 1 lime (if the orange juice isn't sour, add a little more -remember Indian limes are small)
2 tsps oregano seasoning (salted one that comes as a pizza topping)
2 tsps red chilli flakes
1/2 tsp freshly crushed corriander seeds (don't substitute with corriander powder - its better to omit this ingredient than use powdered)
10-12 cloves garlic - finely chopped
2" ginger finely chopped
1 tsp black pepper freshly crushed
2 pinches of cinnamon powder
salt to taste
6-7 stalks of corriander leaves - finely chopped

Method:
Make a marinade with all the ingredients except the corriander leaves and the chops.
Marinate the chops in the mixture overnight (I marinated them for 2 days)
Bring to room temperature before cooking.
Add the corriander leaves and mix well.
Pan fry, roast, grill or Barbecue the chops on both sides until done.

Serve with a side of salad or pasta and with plenty of napkins, because you won't be able to resist picking the bones clean.

Kim's tip:
I think I'll add a bit of star anise to the marinade next time as that flavour would combine well with these too