Chef critique
Cider Pork Chops with Red Cabbage
The recipe features an appealing flavor profile and excellent temperature guidance, but the one-skillet sequencing will burn residual sugars and the vegetables are noticeably underseasoned.
Score: 6/10
Suggested fixes
- Reverse the skillet operations: sear and finish the pork chops first, transfer them to a platter to rest, and then cook the shallot, cabbage, and apples in the residual pork fat to utilize the fond and avoid burning any sugars.
- Increase the salt for the cabbage mixture to 2 teaspoons of Diamond Crystal kosher salt flakes.
- Update the total salt in the ingredient list to 4 1/2 teaspoons to reflect the increased seasoning.
Issues
- high / cookability: Cooking the maple-braised cabbage first and then searing the pork chops in the same skillet will cause residual sugars from the maple syrup and apples to burn over medium-high heat, ruining the sear and introducing a burnt flavor.
- medium / flavor: The cabbage, apple, and shallot mixture (22 ounces total) is underseasoned with only 1 teaspoon of Diamond Crystal kosher salt flakes (roughly 0.5% salinity by weight). It should be seasoned with 2 teaspoons to reach the recommended 1% salinity for vegetables.
- medium / timing: Because the pork chops take about 13 minutes to cook and 5 minutes to rest, holding the cabbage first means it will sit for nearly 20 minutes, becoming lukewarm and soggy by the time it is served.
Strengths
- Targets the correct pull temperature of 140°F for the pork chops.
- Uses a cleanly formatted bulleted list for the cider mixture with correct spacing.
- Restates exact ingredient quantities concisely when first incorporating them into the instructions.