Three Steps to the Juiciest Pork Chops

Double Espresso Pork Chops

Awhile back, we went for much needed beach time in South Florida. After too much sun, we decided a trip to Little Havana in Miami would be wiser than more sun. These Double Espresso Pork Chops are my ode to that beautiful day, a brilliant coffee culture and the food we experienced on Calle Ocho and use my three steps to the juiciest pork chops.

What is Calle Ocho?

Calle Ocho is the main street in the area of Miami called Little Havana. Home to many Cuban immigrants, it's also a culinary and cultural hub of Miami. Hand-rolled cigar shops, coffee bars and restaurants featuring Cuban specialties abound. It was a beautiful afternoon discovering more about this culture that has been so hidden all these years. Pork and mixed seafood ceviche were the food highlights.

The Icons of Little Havana - Rooster, 50s era cars and Coffee

Cuban Coffee Culture

For Cubans, coffee isn't so much about a rush of energy to get through the day. It's about friendship. It's a social ritual. The most ordered drink is simply a Cafe Cubano. It is basically a double espresso brewed with sugar. It's very strong and very sweet. What I found so interesting was they served it in a small styrofoam cup with 3 very tiny cups, the size of individual coffee creamers. I pondered this for awhile then before leaving the shop asked the owner what it was about. She confirmed what we thought...they were for sharing with those around you. It was so inspiring! FYI, should you be in Cuba, you won't find this practice. It is only a Cuban American custom but is practiced in Cuban neighborhoods throughout the US. And the actual name for the drink served this way is a Colada not Cafe Cubano.

Double Espresso Pork Chop Inspiration

Our little day trip inspired me to combine my two favorite experiences of that day into a recipe - espresso and pork. I have used espresso in both the brine and the rub. The espresso flavor is more of a background note, but it definitely adds a richness to the rub. Cuban food is not typically very spicy, just super flavorful. To keep the flavor going, the rub also has smoked paprika, chile powder, granulated garlic and onion which formed a delicious crust when searing the pork chops.

Best Pork Chops to Use

While pork is a popular protein source, it can be very sketchy if you don't get it from a quality source.

• Good - Natural pork with no antibiotics or hormones. If pork doesn’t at least have these designations, don’t buy it. If you can swing it and there’s not a huge difference in price, go for Organic or Pastured though, as natural designation doesn’t really mean much.

• Better - Organic pork is raised under rigorous conditions with no GMOs on grass or in feed and they have more open housing.

• Best - Pastured pork is best if you can find a local pig farmer. Fact: Pigs are omnivores as are chickens. Free range farmers allow pigs to roam about eating bugs, scraps and whatever else they come across along with supplemental feed. Do ask farmers if they use organic feed, however because some some farmers do so much good in letting them roam and graze but then feed the pigs conventional feed which is full of GMOs, herbicides (such as Roundup) and pesticides.

Three Steps to the Juiciest Pork Chops Every Time

Even if you don’t overcook pork chops, they can still come out dry and tough if you don’t take these few extra steps.

1. Brine your pork - Infuse the pork with a little extra water and flavor that permeates the whole chop.

2. Don’t overcook - Cook just until they reach 145 degrees and are still a touch pink on the inside.

3. Cut across the grain - Find which way the “lines” or grain of the pork are going and slice perpendicularly to them.

Why brine pork chops?

Many cuts of pork are super juicy because they have a higher fat ratio to muscle. Pork chops have very little. Like chicken breasts, they need a little TLC to make sure they don't dry out during the cooking process. Typical brine ingredients are a liquid of some sort, a relatively large amount of salt and a little sweetness along with some flavoring agents. I used espresso for the liquid, Whole30 friendly apple juice for the sweetness, and garlic and bay leaves for flavor.

What kind of espresso to use

Espresso is really just finely ground coffee. It is always unflavored and can vary in lightness of roast. For this recipe, you want a French Roast or other dark roast coffee. You can just use finely ground unflavored coffee or you can buy espresso powder. Just don't use instant coffee. That is NOT the same thing at all and is much weaker. To use finely ground coffee, add 2 tbsp to 2 cups boiling water and let it sit for several minutes. Strain then use as directed.

What to serve with Double Espresso Pork Chops

Traditional Cuban meal accompaniments would be black beans and rice along and some sweet plantains. But since I'm always trying to get more veggies in my diet, we had roasted sweet potatoes and proscuitto wrapped asparagus. (It was pork-palooza at our house!) The chimichurri sauce WAS good on the roasted sweet potatoes which happen to also be a traditional Cuban side dish - Batatas Fritas - so I felt we carried out the theme even without the beans, rice and plantains.

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Double Espresso Pork Chops

This recipe breaks down these steps adding a little twist - espresso. You can use decaf or regular, but don’t skip it. Between the brine and the dry rub, it adds a deep rich flavor.

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