Thai-Style Peanut and Panko-Crusted Pork Chops

My friend Nicole pinned this to her Pinterest Page.  I saw it. It looked good.  I showed it to D.  He agreed.
Nicole got it from My Gourmet Connection.  The note said it was adapted from a recipe created by Chef Jeffrey Fuelo for a 2007 Peanut Advisory Board contest.

We weren't sure how lemongrass was bought, but you can get it at Whole Foods by the stalk.  So that was good.  We never looked at Kroger to see if they had it (we had eye doctors appointments and the eye doctor is 2 doors down from the WF).

So I came home from work and D was finishing this one up.  He didn't look unhappy, so I considered that he thought it probably medium hard to make (stuffed meat isn't something that I would try, so I would think it was hard).  The taste was really good.  Between the color of the stuffing and the taste, it was like a blast of goodness in your mouth, but being that it was Thai-like, there was no heat, surprisingly.

I would definitely have again. We forgot to put a side on the menu list, so we had with rice.

Thai-Style Peanut and Panko-Crusted Pork Chops

Photo by ALB

Ingredients:
4 thick (1-inch) boneless pork loin chops
3/4 cup roasted, unsalted peanuts
3/4 cup panko crumbs
1 large egg
1 tablespoon milk
Coconut (or vegetable) oil for frying (used vegetable)
Lime wedges

For the stuffing:
3 cloves garlic
1 slice fresh ginger (about 1-inch diameter, 1/4-inch thick)
2 stalks lemongrass (lower portion only), roughly chopped
3/4 cup fresh cilantro leaves and stems, loosely packed
1 teaspoon coconut (or vegetable) oil (used vegetable)
1 tablespoon fish sauce

Preparation:
Preheat the oven to 375°F.

Trim any excess fat from the edges of the pork chops and, using a sharp knife, cut a pocket into each, leaving about 1/2-inch of the meat intact around the edges.

Place the peanuts in the work bowl of a food processor and pulse until they reach the consistency of coarse crumbs. Transfer to a shallow dish (a pie plate works well), add the panko and combine well.

Place the garlic, ginger, lemongrass, cilantro, coconut oil and fish sauce in the processor and pulse until the mixture forms a thick paste.

Fill the chops with the stuffing mixture and secure with toothpick if necessary.

Whisk the egg and milk together in a shallow dish. Carefully dip each pork chop in the egg mixture, then place in the peanut-panko mixture and coat thoroughly on all sides.

Film the bottom of an oven-proof skillet with coconut oil and heat over medium-high heat. Fry the pork chops, turning carefully, until golden on both sides, about 4 minutes total. Cover the pan loosely with foil and place in the oven until the pork is cooked through, 6 to 8 minutes longer.

Transfer the chops to plates and serve with lime wedges and steamed jasmine rice.

Makes 4 servings

Adapted from a recipe created by Chef Jeffrey Fuelo for a 2007 Peanut Advisory Board contest.

Nutritional Information from MyFitness Pal
Servings: 4
Calories: 376; Carbs: 17; Fat: 20; Protein: 31; Sodium: 763; Fiber: 3

Ingredients used for Nutritional Analysis
Farmland Pork - Pork Loin Chop Boneless, 16 oz.
Peanuts - All types, dry-roasted, with salt, 3 oz
Kikkoman - Panko Japanese Style Bread Crumbs, 0.75 Cup
Aldi - Goldhen - Farm Fresh Eggs, 1 egg
Friendly Farms (Aldi's) - 2% Reduced Fat Milk W/ Vitamin A&d, 0.13 cup (240ml) (couldn't get a smaller portion)
Oil - Vegetable, canola, 1 tbsp
Generic - Fresh Garlic Clove, 3 Clove
Ginger root - Raw, 2 tsp
Fresh Herb - Lemongrass - Raw, 2 Stalk
Cilantro - 1 Cup, 0.75 Cup
Oil - Vegetable, canola, 1 tsp
Generic - Fish Sauce, 1 tbsp