Grilled Cola-glazed Pork Chops with Apple & Potato Mash

By cookism

People tend to be put off when it comes to cooking pork chops, thinking that if you undercook them, you’ll get trichinosis and a stomach full of parasitic worms. It’s a legit worry, but we don’t have to get hard up on cooking these sweet loins. Get the fear out of your heads and heat up the grill. With juicy, melt-in-your-mouth slabs of pork glazed with rich, tangy coke coming your way, who cares? And a creamy, refreshing apple-potato mash on the side, it’s time to pig out.
(Pork chops recipe adapted from Coca-Cola The Cookbook)

Ingredients

• For the pork chops:
• 1 tsp of Olive Oil
• 1 Clove of Minced Garlic
• 2 Bay Leaves
• Leaves from 3 Springs of Thyme
• 3 tbsp of Balsamic Vinegar
• 1 Cup of Coke
• 4 Pork Chops (about 150g each)
• For apple & potato mash:
• 500 g of Potato (scrubbed and washed)
• 2 Granny Smith Apples (peeled & cores removed)
• 1/4 Cup of Milk
• 1/4 Cup of Thickened Cream
• 50 g of Softened Butter
• 3 Garlic Cloves
• 1 tbsp of Cider Vinegar
• Olive Oil
• Salt & Black Pepper

Details

Servings 4
Adapted from cookism.tumblr.com

Preparation

Step 1

1. Preheat oven to 180C. Place garlic cloves on a piece of aluminium foil. Season with salt, pepper and a drizzle of olive oil.
2. Fold the foil into a parcel and roast the garlic for about 30 minutes. When the garlic is cooked, allow it to cool and remove the skin.
3. In the meantime, peel and core the apples. Put potatoes and apples in a large pot. Cover them with cold water and add a generous pinch of salt. Bring the water to a boil and cook until potatoes are tender and easily pierced with a skewer. This takes about 20 minutes or more depending on the size of the potatoes. Try choosing potatoes that are roughly the same size. This allows them to cook evenly. The apples may cook faster than the potatoes. Just keep an eye and transfer them to a bowl with a slotted spoon when they are soft.
4. When potatoes are ready, drain and return them to the pot under low heat. Cook while gently shaking the pot for about 5 minutes to dry out as much water from the potatoes as possible. Mash potatoes and apples through a ricer.
5. Combine milk and thickened cream in a bowl. Warm them up in the microwave and add into the mash, followed by butter, roasted garlic, cider vinegar, salt and pepper to taste. Mix well and leave aside. You can heat it up again for later use.
6. For pork chops, heat oil in a saucepan and lightly sauté thyme, garlic and bay leaves for 1 minute till aromatic. Pour in balsamic vinegar, coke and bring it to a boil. Lower the heat to allow it to simmer for about another 10 minutes until the sauce is reduced.
7. Season pork chops with salt and pepper on both sides, brushing them with coke glaze. Add a little oil and heat the grill pan over medium heat. Cook pork chops until it registers 145F on a food thermometer, about 3 to 5 minutes per side depending on the thickness of the chops. Allow the meat to rest for 3 minutes.
8. Brush remaining glaze onto the pork chops and serve immediately with the mash!