The thousands of fantastic restaurants offering authentic tastes of traditional Tuscan cuisine are enjoyed by millions of people each year, including many of the people who stay at our Tuscany apartmentsand villas.
But it’s not only in the few weeks you spend in Tuscany each year that you can enjoy the delights of Tuscan food. Anyone can cook up a taste of Tuscany at home and that’s what we aim to help you do with our series of blogs – provide a Taste of Tuscany!
This particular recipe is an apt one to start the series, since it’s one created by a foodie who was inspired by a trip to the region.
Here’s how to cook Karen Tedesco’s Tuscan Brined Pork Chops with Salsa Verde:
Place the pork chops into a large freezer bag and place this bag in a large bowl. Then use another bowl to whisk the salt and sugar along with six 6 cups of water until it is dissolved. Add the garlic, bay leaves, rosemary sprigs, chili and lemon zest to this mixture and then pour the brine into the bag containing the pork chops.
Seal this bag and place it in the refrigerator for at least one hour, and as many as four if you have time.
While the pork is marinating make the salsa verde by pulsing the parsley, arugula and coriander in a food processor until chopped. Add garlic, capers, olive oil and half a teaspoon of salt to this mixture and pulse it until the ingredients are combined.
Once this is done you can taste the verde and season with additional salt if required.
When the pork chops have marinated they can be grilled at a medium heat for around four minutes on either side.
Once nicely browned remove the chops from the pan and loosely cover them with foil. Once they have rested for around five minutes season with black pepper to taste and then serve them with chopped rosemary and the salsa verde.
