Brined Pork Chops

We received some Iowa pork chops from Bruce's brother this year for Christmas so last night we invited my sister and her husband over for dinner and I made a lovely pork chop dinner. I decided to brine the chops since they were very thick and also because our Thanksgiving turkey always turns out so great when we brine it. And, as I expected they would, they turned out perfectly seasoned and wonderfully tender. That's why I love brining. The meat turns out so tender and you don't have to add salt and pepper at all because the brine seasons it for you. I adapted this recipe from my favorite kitchen store's recipe, Sur la Table. I used my Plum Good Pork Chops recipe after I brined them and used my orange marmalade instead of plums. I have six jars of orange marmalade I'm trying to use up after experiementing with those oranges from Seville last month and we're having a pretty delicious time of it. The marmalade is especially good with homemade biscuits which we also had with the pork chops. Since I had plums on my mind with this dinner, I made my Plum Mock Upside-Down Cake for dessert with a little dollup of whip cream. That was the first cake recipe I ever posted on my blog in 2011 and it's still a good recipe. Back then, I was always trying to use up plums from our plum tree so I came up with all kinds of plum recipes. This meal was a very fruit-oriented meal. I guess you can tell we are getting eager for summer and fruit after a long winter.

Makes enough brine for 4 pork chops

4 cups of cold water, divided
1 cup of ice
1 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup kosher salt
1/4 cup brown sugar

1. In a small saucepan over medium heat, add 1 cup of water and remaining brine ingredients, heat until salt and sugar has dissolved.

2. Transfer to a container that can accommodate pork chops and brine, add remaining 3 cups of water and ice. Stir to cool completely. Add pork chops, cover and chill for 4 to 6 hours.

3. After 4-6 hours, remove chops from brine and pat dry with paper towels.

4. Proceed with your favorite pork chop recipe. I used my favorite Plum Good Pork Chops.

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