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Saturday, January 14, 2012

Pork Marsala

I didn't marry my husband for his cooking skills.  We met when we were both teaching freshman English -- him as an instructor, me as a graduate assistant.  For our first date, he invited me to his apartment for leftover walnut cheddar loaf he had prepared for a department potluck the night before.  I had been at the potluck, too, so I also had the loaf on day one.  It wasn't all that great the first time, so you can imagine that reheated it was no treat.  Who invites a girl over for a first date of mediocre leftovers?  I married him anyway, go figure.

Still, there are a few dishes he really can cook.  This pork marsala is his specialty.  He doesn't cook very often, but when I have boneless pork chops, I sometimes press him into service.  I make the dish, too, but I prefer it when he cooks it.  (Who doesn't need a break sometimes?)  He calls it scallopini, but the meat is not really cut into scallops, we cut it into strips.  Whatever you call it, it's really good.

There was no written recipe for this dish, but last night, we measured as we went.  You can alter the seasonings to suit your own taste.  My husband has even been known to add Mrs. Dash to the flour.  The main thing is to use sweet marsala.  We used dry marsala once and weren't happy with the resulting flavor.


Pork Marsala


4 boneless butterfly pork chops
1 egg
1/2 cup milk
1 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
8 tablespoons butter
1 cup sweet marsala wine

Preheat oven to 200 degrees F. 

Trim fat from pork chops.  Slice chops into 1/2-inch slices. 

Mix salt, pepper, and garlic powder into flour in a medium bowl.  Beat egg and milk together in a small bowl.  Lightly batter the meat by dipping meat into egg mixture, then into flour. 

Melt 3 tablespoons butter in a large, non-stick skillet.  Fry the pork slices in batches until golden and cooked through, adding more butter as needed.  Keep cooked pieces warm in oven until all meat is cooked.

Return all meat to skillet.  Add 1/2 cup wine.  Gently toss the pork slices to coat.  Allow wine to cook down; add remaining wine and allow to cook down again until the sauce is thick.  Serve immediately.

Note: Adjust the seasonings to taste.  You can also add onion powder if desired.



11 comments:

  1. This looks yummy! My husband doesn't cook at all, so count your blessings.

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  2. Hi There, Wow---that looks so delicious.. Think I'll borrow that recipe. Thanks!!!! My hubby IS a cook ---and a good one. When we were first dating, I tried to impress him with my homemade (out of a jar) spaghetti... I had no idea at the time that he loved to cook and that he was such a great cook.... I'm surprised that he didn't leave me after that meal.... ha ha ----BUT he married me!!!! Yeah!

    Thanks for coming to my blog. Come back anytime. I have a hodge podge type of blog --which includes birds, flowers, travel, hiking, waterfalls, etc.... I also love Genealogy...

    Come back and I'll return to yours.
    Hugs,
    Betsy

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  3. He invited you over for leftovers??? Unbelievable. Funny how despite going to so little effort he still got his girl! Great that there are a few things he can cook like this pork dish - what a great recipe.

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  4. Looks delicious! I'm going to have to give it a go sometime! I recall being invited to my husband's apartment in college for his gourmet cooking once... He had made a first attempt at Garlic Chicken, and this experience was the one that taught him that a clove and a bulb of garlic are very different things... It was like a garlic bomb went off in there. I still married him, too. And he's actually a really good cook these days... :-)

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  5. This is the funniest thing I've read in a while! But you STILL married him...ha! I think I have a similar case here but Mr. Hausfrau offered me strange spaghetti. Anyhow, I digress. Excellent Marsala recipe here...thanks for sharing (and making it a printable!).

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  6. Wow - does that look delicious! Funny story about your first date - I'm sure most of our first date stories aren't glamorous.
    Thanks!

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  7. The story of your first date cracks me up :)
    I've had Pork Marsala at a restaurant before and loved it...and this recipe looks so easy to make at home now!

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  8. You are so fortunate, my husband cooks maybe once a year.

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  9. My husband cooks nothing...although lately he has offered to pick up a pizza when I'm busy! This looks delicious and really straight forward to make. Could you do this with chicken too?

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  10. This is definitely on my list of thgigs to try! It looks and sounds like it will be delicious.

    Love the story of your first date. The food may not have been great but he managed to charm you anyway! It seems to have worked out well for both of you!

    I keep meaning to tell you that your photos are always so nice. I find it hard to get good pictures of snow and yours came out so good.

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