Circle B Ranch Pork Center Cut Chops with Peach Basil Bourbon Glaze

This post is being sponsored by Circle B Ranch Pork featuring their AMAZING Center Cut Pork Chops. Their chops and many other incredible products are available on their website. While this is a compensated post, all comments and opinions are 100% my own. In addition, below is an amazing promotion they are offering TKW Family members!  While this is a compensated post, all comments and opinions are 100% my own

As you all know I am a HUGE fan of pigs.  I love pigs almost as much as I love Mr. Fantabulous (shhh… don’t let him know that).  I love bacon (I firmly believe that should be its own food group) and I absolutely LOVE pork chops, loins and roasts.  Pretty much most parts of the pig. So imagine just how excited I was when I was contacted by Circle B Ranch Pork to come up with a recipe featuring their Center Cut Pork Chops! Like seriously, I don’t think I could have been any more excited.  Since I pretty much fell in love with Marina’s Italian Style Tomato Sauce and Marina’s Italian Style Meatballs, I was in hog heaven at the chance to create something awesome for them.  And yes, I said hog heaven… LOL

These chops arrived from southwest Missouri and the beautiful Ozark countryside packed beautifully and still frozen solid.   When I took them out of the box my eyes were as big as silver dollars as these chops were GORGEOUS and HUGE!  We’re talking a good 1 – 1 1/2″ thick each!  I placed them in the fridge overnight to thaw properly. The best way to defrost pork is in the refrigerator in its original wrapping. A 1″ thick chop will take roughly 12-14 hours to defrost. Once thawed, sealed, pre-packed fresh pork cuts can be kept in the refrigerator 2 to 4 days but no longer. Trust me though, these beauties were not going to be resting thawed in my fridge for long.

Just look at that GORGEOUS coloring and markings on the pork! They were positively perfect! Just the right amount of fat to ensure that when they were cooked they would be super moist and juicy. When I took them out of the sealed package I placed one down on a plate.  I do this thing with pork (and sometimes beef) where I will press down in the raw fleshy part of it.  If it has “give” and feels ‘tender’ then I know it will cook up perfectly.  When I did that with these chops, it was like pushing down on a pillow it was just so soft and tender.  Seriously I stood there grinning!

Now one thing that makes these chops special is they come from Berkshire Hogs.  If you’re not well versed in the pork lingo this will help put it into perspective: Berkshire Hogs is the Kobe/Wagyu Beef version of Pork.  We’re talking the ELITE OF THE ELITE!  So yeah, it’s THAT GOOD! 

To me, there is nothing worse than a pork chop that has been overcooked to the point where it’s gray (meaning it’s beyond dried out) and it’s tougher than shoe leather so with this recipe I really wanted to concentrate on doing it proper justice.  You just have to respect the ingredients and in return you will be rewarded.  Now my favorite way to cook chops is similar to how I cook my steaks – pan seared for a few minutes then in a hot oven to finish up.  That sear seals in the juices and the oven method ensures that you will retain the moisture.  Once I saw these chops I knew EXACTLY how I wanted to make them and what would compliment the flavor without stealing the spot light of the true star of the meal.  Those Center Cut Pork Chops were the true star of the show with other ingredients being its supporting characters.

Speaking with Marina of Circle B Ranch Pork, I wanted to learn more about how they raise their hogs.  Me being a true lover of pigs and a huge food snob I wanted to be sure of what went into the product I was testing and creating a recipe for.  I care for the animals and how they are raised.  The more I spoke with her about it, the more I was truly impressed by not just their superior business standards but also the fact that they treat their animals with respect.  That’s important to me as a consumer.  Once again, Marina provided me with such a beautifully well written overview of how they raise their hogs, I wanted to share it with you all.

At Circle B Ranch, we pride ourselves in our humane and wholesome mission. We are Animal Welfare Approved and Certified Humanely Raised and Handled.  We’re homegrown American and so is the pork.  We will provide a clean and 100% natural environment to breed, farrow and grow 100% Berkshire/Kurabota and Red Wattle Heritage Pork for restaurant and consumer consumption.

We will accomplish this mission by raising 100% Berkshire/Kurabota and Red Wattle Heritage Pork in a natural environment in the lush Ozark Hills of southwest Missouri.

The animals will be 100% raised outdoors by using sustainable and humane production standards.  At Circle B Ranch, we are committed to a smaller farm that raises a quality product.

Since the animals are free-ranged on the pasture, they will do what hogs do best: root and graze for the majority of their food. We will also add to the animal’s diet with a natural corn-soybean based food with mineral and vitamin supplements. You, as the consumer, can be 100% confident that the Berkshire or Red Wattle Hog Product we are selling you has been bred, farrowed and raised on our farm.

This is truly impressive and respectful! Now back to this recipe and my drooling over these chops!

I so wish right now there was something like smell-o-internet and or I could literally hand you a knife and fork to taste this right now! I could not have asked for a recipe to come together more perfectly than this one!  I wish you could have seen my face when I flipped these over from their sear.  I literally gasped out loud!  They were absolutely GORGEOUS!  I was so entranced by their beauty that I almost forgot what I was doing!

I quickly added some butter on top and fresh basil leaves and into the oven the hot pan went.  Since these chops were behemoth in size they took about 8-9 minutes to get to 150F (don’t worry, while they are resting on the plate they will still continue to cook and get to the 160F temp). As I took them from the oven I literally was mesmerized but I quickly plated them, tented them with foil. You want to tent loosely with foil (loosely because tightly would hold in too much moisture and soften the crust) to help retain the heat. Once tented I quickly went to making the Peach Basil Bourbon Glaze.  Now this whole glaze came together in minutes; the perfect amount of time to allow the meat to rest.  I particularly loved the use of bourbon in this recipe as bourbon tends to lend a very faint flavor of caramel, vanilla, charcoal, and a very light taste of wood to your dishes when cooked with.  It married perfectly with the sweetness of the peaches and the subtle peppery flavor of the fresh basil leaves.  The butter in it not only acts as a binder to it all but adds that depth of richness that brings it all together in the end.

When I plated these, you literally could smell the aromas throughout the house.  It was sweet, savory, woodsy and just truly intoxicating.  As I sat down the slowly cut that first piece I knew… I knew I was eating something truly magical.  This pork was unlike any other pork chop I have ever had in my life!  It literally made me put my knife and fork down, sit back in my chair, close my eyes and just shut out the world with every single delicious chew.  Now I’ve had great chops before but seriously I have never, EVER had a pork chop this perfect!  The flavor of these Circle B Ranch Pork Berkshire hog pork chops truly are the ELITE OF THE ELITE!

I was honestly blown away by just how juicy, moist and flavorful they were!  They so incredibly tender; that pork just melted like butter in your mouth.  It was literally a full-on flavor explosion in your mouth with every bite!  I literally was sad when I looked down at my plate and saw that it was all gone.  I wanted more.  No, I NEEDED more!  You think you’ve had great pork before but I’m telling you this unless you bought it from Circle B Ranch Pork, then you have only ever had 2nd rate pork.  One bite of their chops will blow your mind and put an IMMEDIATE smile on your face!  I love them so much that I told Marina I’m moving to their ranch!

As I said, these are truly incredible but don’t take my words for it.  You need to get some for yourself!

Circle B Ranch Pork is offering an incredible Promotion right now to The Kitchen Whisperer family!

For every order of $50.00 or more, receive $10.00 off!  Coupon code SPRING. Click Center Cut Pork Chops to add to your cart today!  Tell them The Kitchen Whisperer sent you.

Also stop by their Facebook page and show them some love!  Don’t forget to follow them on Twitter too!

Circle B Ranch Pork Center Cut Chops with Peach Basil Bourbon Glaze

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• Author: The Kitchen Whisperer

Ingredients

• 4 1/2 tablespoon unsalted butter, divided
• 2 Circle B Ranch Center Cut Pork Chops (about 1–1 1/2” thick)
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon black pepper
• 10 fresh basil leaves
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne
• 1 medium shallot, thinly sliced
• 1/4 cup bourbon
• 2 large peaches, pitted and halved *See note for canned
• 1/4 cup light brown sugar (only needed if using fresh peaches. Omit when using canned)
• 1/3 cup peach syrup (only use if using canned peaches. Omit if using fresh peaches)

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Instructions

1. Pat the chops dry and season with 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper on both sides.
2. Set aside for 30 minutes at room temp (providing they were cold).
3. Preheat oven to 425F, rack in the middle.
4. Heat a cast-iron or heavy oven-safe skillet over medium-high heat and add in 1 1/2 tablespoon of butter.
5. Once the butter begins to foam place the pork in the pan and do not move for 4-5 minutes or until you have a really nice brown sear.
6. Flip the chops, shut the heat off to the pan off and immediately place 1/2 tablespoon of butter on each chop and place 2 basil leaves over top of each chop.
7. Place the pan in the oven, continuing to cook until the internal temperature reaches 150°F, 7-9 minutes unless very thick or thin.
8. Remove pork chops to a plate, discard the charred basil leaves and tent with foil. The pork will rise to 160F while they are resting on the plate.
9. Place the pan back on the burner over medium heat and add the shallots and 1 tablespoon butter.
10. Cook for 3-4 minutes or until the shallots are softened.
11. Add in the fresh peaches and cook for 1 minute, gently stirring. If using canned, do not add yet.
12. Remove your pan from the heat and add the bourbon.
13. Return to the heat and bring to a boil.
14. Stir until the liquid has begun to reduce (about 2-3 minutes) and add in the brown sugar or the peach syrup, cayenne, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper and the basil leaves (either leave whole or tear into pieces – don’t cut with a knife).
15. Cook for 1-2 minutes or until the mixture thickens and becomes syrupy.
16. Add in the last tablespoon of butter and stir. This helps the glaze get creamy and rich. Taste for seasoning.
17. If using canned peaches, add in the canned peach halves
18. Plate the chops and spoon the peach basil bourbon glaze on top.

Notes

If fresh peaches aren’t in season, buy peaches 1 16 ounce can of peach halves in light syrup reserving 1/3 cup of the syrup.

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