Pork Chop

Here, leftover cranberry sauce (or canned cranberry sauce) and boneless pork chops make a very contemporary little supper. Freshen up any leftover mashed white or sweet potatoes by stirring in chopped lemon and orange peel. A salad of bitter greens tossed with a cider vinaigrette, and a simple dessert of grape clusters and spiced bar cookies round things out.

This recipe can be prepared in 45 minutes or less. Corn muffins, coleslaw and boiled green beans round out the main course. Finish with peach pie à la mode.

This dish goes well with boiled or roasted small red or Yukon Gold potatoes.

Magnolia Grill offers these chops with a black-eyed pea risotto and homemade corn relish. The pork is chilled overnight in brine.

Constant basting with this lively sauce ensures moist chops and plenty of flavor. Warm potato salad with tarragon and white wine is the natural accompaniment.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

A delicious tapa that is called flamenquines in Spanish. The precise origin of the name is unknown, but it is most certainly related to the term flamenco, which refers to any colorful dish native to Andalusia.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

This recipe can be prepared in 45 minutes.

One hundred and fifty years ago, home cooks and commercial food processors relied on brining (along with salting and smoking) to prevent meats, fish, and vegetables from spoiling. Today, brining is making a comeback. Brined chicken and pork dishes appear on upscale restaurant menus. Cooks are rediscovering that brining is a simple way of improving texture and flavor. Since brining causes meat to absorb liquid, a seasoned brining solution makes meat juicier and tastier than it would be otherwise, a godsend for ultra-lean American pork and even for turkey. My friend Nancy Oakes, chef-owner of the San Francisco restaurant Boulevard, gave me her recipe for brining , which I've adapted for this easy dish. I like to serve these pork chops with Versatile Buttermilk Mashed Potatoes and Fiery Garlicky Greens. If there are leftovers, cooked chops will keep for several days in the refrigerator. Their low fat content makes it too easy to dry them out during reheating, so I prefer to use them cold. Trim the meat off the bone, remove any fat remaining along the outer edge, and then slice the meat as thin as possible. Use in a sandwich or a salad, or as part of a cold meat plate, with Roasted Pear Chutney or Herbal Mayonnaise. (All these recipes mentioned can be found in the book). Twelve hours is the optimal time for brining the chops, so plan on making the brine and marinating the chops the night before you intend to grill them. Brining them for slightly less time is fine, but longer than 12 hours, and the chops will start to take on the texture and flavor of ham. Once brined, however, they can be refrigerated for several days before cooking.

Active time: 40 min Start to finish: 50 min

Brining the pork makes it especially juicy.

Serve with: Spinach salad topped with toasted almonds, and sesame breadsticks.

Kale with Sautéed Apple and Onion makes the perfect side dish for these chops Active time: 15 min Start to finish: 25 min

Brining these pork chops for 2 days results in succulent, tender meat. The brine in this recipe is based on one that appears in Mark Peel and Nancy Silverton's Food of Campanile.