Pork Chops with Mustard and Cream

We don't often eat pork chops in my house. We've had the fear put into us by my mother-in-law that we will have a terrible night's sleep if we eat pork in the evening. Also, I've possibly been put off it by years of having to endure eating grey, leathery shoe-sole tasteless meat disguising itself as food. You'd think it was still wartime the way some people still cook it.Make sure you but good quality pork, from well looked after pigs. That's a good place to start. And don't be scared of it being a little pink in the middle. That way, it will be juicy, tender and flavoursome and will, with hope, overcome bad memories of the school lunch hall, chewing interminably and trying to move 'food' around the plate to make it look as though you've polished most of it off and are bloody well grateful, boy. I didn't fight in the trenches surviving on tinned pilchards for you to etc etc.Today's recipe is simple and very quick to make. Pork, creamy mushrooms and mustard is a classic combination and while it may seem to be a little old-fashioned, there's nothing wrong with that; delicious is delicious. The sesame broccoli brings it out of the aspidistra lined 1970's suburbs a little, just don't boil the veg. for four hours.Ingredients for four people4 good thick pork chopsA few handfuls of button of chestnut mushrooms, sliced1/2 a red onion, finely sliced2 sprigs of rosemaryA few large sage leaves300ml double cream1-2tbsp wholegrain mustard (I like Moutarde de Meaux, very tasty and has no sugar or other nonsense)Olive oil for fryingSalt and pepper to seasonEnough broccoli for four people, stems too1tbsp sesame oil1tbsp sesame seeds, toasted if you likeMethodWhile heating a cast iron skillet for the meat, gently soften the onion in a sauté pan in the olive oil until translucent then add the herbs and mushrooms.Season well and cook until the mushrooms are colouring. Add the cream and stir in the mustard. Cook for a few minutes until the cream thickens. Loosen with a little water if it gets too thick. Taste and adjust the seasoning and mustard.Cook the pork chops on a high heat for a few minutes on each side until golden and the fat is rendering and crisping. Hold it down on its fatty edge to achieve this. Leave it to rest and boil the broccoli for about four minutes. I slice the stems and throw them in a minute before the florets. Drain very well, water really gets stuck in all those buds and drizzle over the sesame seeds and oil.Serve the pork with the sauce and broccoli.

For the Chop

It's not often I'll cook pork at home. Or anywhere else for that matter. I'm not a huge fan really, apart from in sausages, which doesn't really count. I just find it pretty dull. Loin, fillet, medallions, snore. Occasionally a chop will appear, but generally I prefer the rest of the pig.So why is there a pork chop recipe here? Because I believe in second chances. Although in porkies case, it's been far more than two chances. This time I've thrown loads of flavour at it and because of it's big, dense meatiness, it can take it.Sweet onions and charred tomatoes with the spicy chilli and chorizo all melting in with the garlic and onion are hearty and satisfying. Here's a twenty minute meal, then, that has saved pork from the chop.Ingredients for two:2 pork chops, preferably bone inA few handfuls of vine on cherry tomatoes10cm chorizo, diced1 red onion, cut into eight wedges2-3 garlic cloves1tbsp dried rosemary1tbsp dried parsleyA handful of radishes, quarteredA couple of green chillies, sliced lengthways2 spring onions, slicedDried onions to garnishOlive oilSalt and pepper to seasonBalsamic vinegar to deglazeMethod:Heat the oven to 180c.Heat some oil in a saute pan and add the onion nd garlic. Cook slowly for about 10-15 minutes, turning occasionally until golden.Sprinkle the rosemary  and parsely over the pork and season well.Add the chorizo and stir well. Cook for . few minutes and add the pork, standing it up on its fatty edge so it browns.Add the tomatoes and sit the pork back down flat.Add the radishes and chilli then drizzle over a little more olive oil.Put the pan in the oven and roast for about 10 minutes.Stir through the spring onion, sprinkle over the dried onions and serve straight to the table.

Slow roast, spiced, crackled pork sandwiches

I cannot resist sharing this recipe. It's a dish based on my love of American food, which was stoked by many early mornings watching Man v. Food to keep myself awake as I cuddled my newborn son.Although the challenges were sometimes a bit grotesque in the programme, the places, ingredients, regional differences and cooking techniques have stuck in my mind.For this recipe, I don't have a smoker big enough to fit brisket in. Nor can I slow-cook a whole pig for 24 hours over hickory chips, much as I’d like to. So I've taken the best bits of my Geordie granny's 'pork with crackling' recipe, spiced it up a little and mixed it with some of my hazy Man v. Food memories – and made myself a very delicious sandwich. It's not something you can quickly knock up, but get everything ready the day before and you will have a week's worth of joy and a lifetime's worth of requests for your famous pork sandwich.Serves:                6Prep time:          20 minutes, plus overnight in the fridgeCooking time:    180 minutesIngredients1.5kg pork belly2 star anise1 5cm piece of cassia bark, or cinnamon1 tsp cloves1 tsp Szechuan peppercorns1 tbsp fennel seeds1 onion1 leek2 carrotsSaltMethod

1. Lightly toast the spices in a dry sauté pan and grind to a powder with a pinch of salt.
2. Score the skin of the pork and pour boiling water all over it. This will help dry it out.
3. Pat dry with kitchen towel and rub in the spice mix, then leave uncovered in the fridge overnight.
4. Heat the oven to 220°C.
5. Chop the onion, leek and carrots. Put them in a roasting tray, then put a rack over them and the pork on that.
6. Cook for 25 minutes, then turn the heat down to 130°C and cook for a further two and a half hours. Check the skin is crisp. If not, turn up the heat to 220°C and cook for a further 10-15 minutes.
7. Leave the pork to rest a while, then tear apart and serve in bread with spring onion, lettuce, mustard and smoky chilli sauce.

Beautiful bubble and squeak

In our house, it’s pretty rare for there to be any crackling left over from a roast pork – or, come to think of it, much pork. But when that does happen, I like making this version of bubble and squeak for brunch the next day. This deserves to be a dish in its own right, so it is even worth making it from scratch.Serves:                4Cooking time:   20 minsIngredientsUse whatever leftovers you have from the roast, or failing that:Shredded slow roast gammon and shattered crackling10 roast potatoes, lightly crushed with a fork½ a Savoy cabbage, finely sliced and blanched in salted water3 spring onions, shredded1 red onion, finely sliced1 tbsp Olive oil and tbsp butter to fry (or use the gammon dripping)3 dill cucumber picklesSalt and pepper to seasonMethod

1. Mix together all the ingredients in a bowl and season well.
2. Heat a frying pan and add the oil and butter until hot.
3. Throw in the cabbage and potatoes, cook well, adding the red and spring onion at the last minute.
4. Serve on warm plates with shredded cooked ham, crackling and sliced pickles, with a touch of wholegrain mustard.

How to food style it

1. With this one, the cabbage forms a great base to structure the flakes of meat, potatoes and onions on. Try to give it form and height.
2. Laying shards of crackling and slivers of spring onion on top helps give it elegance and leads your eye across the whole dish, bringing everything together.
3. A spoon of mustard and some sliced pickles finish it off, keeping it elegant while still remaining rustic. It is, after all, a dish of leftovers.