I Made Vivian Howard’s Big Bone-In Pork Chops with Pickled Peanut Salad
My POV (after cooking it at home)
Complexity: Medium — you do have to think about what you’re doing
Taste: Subtle and savory; an unexpected delight when paired with the pickled peanut salad and mustard seeds
Time & involvement: Considerable — brining and overnight components mean this isn’t something you can decide on and get on the table the same day
Ingredients: A bit more involved than expected — raw peanuts were surprisingly hard to find (lots of roasted options); I eventually landed on baseball peanuts and shelled them myself and it was my first time cooking with mustard seed! It was surprisingly yummy
Overall rating: ★★★★½ / 5
Best for: A relaxed Sunday night supper, having the in-laws over, or anyone who genuinely loves a great pork chop and doesn’t mind planning ahead.
Recipe by Vivian Howard, from Deep Run Roots
Big Bone-In Pork Chops with Pickled Peanut Salad
Serves 4
🧂 You’ll Make
Brined Pork Chops
Pickled Peanut Salad
Pickled Mustard Seeds
⏱ Prep: 30 min active
⏳ Rest/Brine: 2–3 hrs
🔥 Cook: ~20 min
Brined Pork Chops
Ingredients
4 bone-in pork chops (16 oz each)
2 tbsp kosher salt
¼ cup brown sugar
½ cup water
1 tbsp Dijon mustard
3 peppercorns
4 rosemary sprigs
3 sage sprigs
6 garlic cloves
Vegetable oil
Method
Boil water, salt, sugar, Dijon, peppercorns, herbs, and garlic (1 min). Cool.
Brine pork chops 2 hours, refrigerated.
Remove, pat dry, rest 30 min.
Sear in hot oiled cast iron until browned.
Finish in 350°F oven to 145°F internal temp.
Rest 5 min, slice.
Pickled Mustard Seeds (Make Ahead)
Ingredients
¼ cup yellow mustard seeds
¼ cup white wine vinegar
¼ cup water
1 garlic clove, smashed
¼ tsp turmeric
Pinch chili flakes
1 tbsp sugar
½ tsp salt
Method
Boil mustard seeds in water, drain and rinse. Repeat 3x.
Boil vinegar, water, garlic, spices, sugar, salt.
Add seeds, simmer 2 min.
Cool and refrigerate overnight.
Pickled Peanut Salad
Ingredients
2 cups raw peanuts
2 tsp salt, divided
½ cup pickle juice
¼ cup pickled mustard seeds
⅓ cup mustard-seed oil
⅓ cup sliced celery
1 apple, julienned
½ cup celery leaves
⅓ cup sliced scallions
⅓ cup parsley
Juice of 2 lemons
Method
Simmer peanuts in water 2 hours. Drain, cool.
Toss with pickle juice, mustard seeds, oil. Chill 1 hour+.
Fold in remaining ingredients. Season to taste.
Serve
Spoon peanut salad onto platter. Top with sliced pork chops. Finish with a little extra mustard-seed oil if you like.
