Grilled pork chops with plums
`America's Test Kitchen:
The Outdoor Cook'
This encyclopedic volume comes from the experts at America's Test Kitchen, the respected Boston-based operation that tests and tests recipes, and then tests them again, making it invaluable for folks just getting started with grilling or those moving up from grilling to smoking (or as a summer wedding present).
Appropriately subtitled “How to Cook Anything Outside Using Your Grill, Fire Pit, Flat-Top Grill and More,” the book (ATK, $29.99) covers equipment, fuel, fire and safety before getting into meals to whet your appetite.
A whopping 150 recipes are smartly curated: “10 Unexpected Outdoor Recipes” (grilled French Toast, smoked nachos); “5 Dishes to Feed a Crowd” (hot-smoked whole side of salmon); “5 Must-Cook Open-Fire Dishes” (Fireside Chili); “5 Showstoppers” (rotisserie leg of lamb with cauliflower, grape and arugula salad); “Both Hands Needed” (grilled green chile and chorizo cheeseburgers); and more.
And every recipe starts off with the famously informative America's Test Kitchen blurb, “Why This Recipe Works.” The charred guacamole recipe, for example, “employs heat strategically by grilling the aromatics until well charred, grilling the avocados lightly, and leaving the lime off the grill entirely so that its fresh juice brightens the smoky flavors.” And if you're not normally a fan of turkey burgers, consider this: “The smoky, flamekissed flavor imparted by the grill transforms mildmannered turkey burgers into a welcome alternative to beef. But for superlative burgers, you've got to give the patties a little boost with some flavorful add-ins before they hit the heat.”
America's Test Kitchen tweaks a traditional porkand-prunes recipe for “The Outdoor Cook.”
INGREDIENTS
2tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil 1 tablespoon lemon juice
4plums, halved and pitted
2 tablespoons packed brown sugar, divided 1½ teaspoons ground coriander
½ teaspoon table salt
½ teaspoon ground ginger
¼ teaspoon pepper
4 (6-ounce) bone-in pork ribs or center-cut chops, ½ inch thick, trimmed 3ounces (3cups) baby arugula
DIRECTIONS
1. Whisk oil and lemon juice together in medium bowl; set aside dressing.
2. Rub cut sides of plums with 1tablespoon sugar.
3. Combine coriander, salt, ground ginger, pepper and remaining 1tablespoon sugar in small bowl. Pat pork dry with paper towels and sprinkle all over with spice mixture.
4. For a charcoal grill: Open bottom vent completely. Light large chimney starter filled with charcoal briquettes (6quarts). When top coals are partially covered with ash, pour evenly over grill. Set cooking grate in place, cover and open lid vent completely. Heat grill until hot, about 5 minutes.
5. For a gas grill: Turn all burners to high; cover and heat grill until hot, about 15minutes. Leave all burners on high.
6. Clean and oil cooking grate. Grill pork until browned and meat registers 140-145degrees, 2-3minutes per side. Transfer to serving platter, tent with aluminum foil and let rest 10minutes. Meanwhile, grill plums until caramelized and tender, about 3 minutes per side.
7. Add plums and arugula to bowl with dressing and toss to combine. Transfer to serving platter with pork.
Serves 4