Maple Chops & Stroganoffy Sauce

If you have some maple syrup in the cupboard have you ever thought about using it on a savoury dish? Maple syrup marries well (ie. won’t overpower) meats like chicken, lamb and especially pork. Sometimes chops or cutlets can have too much fat, but trim off any excess with some kitchen scissors. There’s no need to marinate the chops, however I’ve included a ‘marinating’ option if you’re able to plan a little in advance. The mushroom and sourcream sauce isn’t fussy and can be made quite quickly on the stove-top while your chops keep warm in a low oven. More to the point, when cooking white meat with bones in a pan, it’s usually a good idea to finish it off in the oven to make sure the meat is cooked through and not raw. Oven times depend on how thick your meat is. For chicken drumsticks I’d go 30min’s in a moderate oven, but for these thick, pork cutlets you see in the photo’s.. 5 to 8 minutes was all they needed. Allowing your meat to get to room temperature before cooking is a good tip (but definitely not in summer when it would spoil quite quickly). As for the sauce, there’s no need for flour or any other thickeners, but do remember to add the parsley, unlike me who forgot when photographing the dish for this post. Oops!

Maple Chops & Stoganoffy Sauce

-4 chops of your choice (chicken, lamb or pork) approx weight 500-750 grams

-1 tablespoon of oil for searing/frying meat

-1/2 cup maple syrup

-Optional 1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard for the sauce

-2 cloves fresh garlic, crushed or finely chopped

-1 tablespoon sweet paprika

-1 teaspoon powdered chicken stock

-salt/pepper to taste

-1/3 cup chopped, fresh parsley

-50ml’s white wine

-50ml’s chicken stock (liquid), made from powder is ok!

-2 tablespoons sour cream or creme fraiche

-250 grams fresh button mushrooms, sliced (approximately 12)

——————————————-

-If you have time to marinate your chops and/or you’ve thought ahead, do so in a freezer bag with a tablespoon of dijon mustard, 1 tablespoon of oil and some salt and pepper. Two hours in the fridge is enough.. or longer if you desire. These ingredient quantities don’t appear in the ingredient list because marinating the meat is optional. It’ll produce a more tender result though.

-Turn your oven on low to around 130 degrees celcius (ready to keep chops warm)

-In a hot pan, sear chops on both sides until lightly golden.

-Pour over maple syrup and allow to bubble for a minute or two, turning meat once.

-Season chops with salt and pepper, then place onto a lined baking tray, with syrup to keep warm in an oven

-In a clean pan saute sliced mushrooms in a little oil until slightly golden

-Add sweet paprika and garlic & continue frying for another minute, stirring occasionally – the mixture will appear dry

-Pour over white wine & chicken stock, add extra chicken stock powder, then bring to boil and reduce liquid by half

-Remove from heat and stir through sour cream and chopped, fresh parsley

-Taste and add some salt and pepper if you think it needs it

-Turn oven off and warm the sauce on a very low heat while you prepare serving plates

-Spoon sauce over cooked chops

-Serve with cooked ribbon noodles & more parsley for garnish or a baked potato and salad – maybe coleslaw?