The traditional Indigenous ingredients in this dish are the prickly pear and onions. This combination creates a deliciously sweet and earthy accompaniment to the saltiness of the pork—a food that was introduced to Native American cuisine thousands of years later. I’ve spoken about the prickly pear cactus of the Sonoran Desert, which bears a fruit that tastes like a hybrid melon-berry reminiscent of a slightly savory plum, as I hope you will start to experiment with this special ingredient in your kitchen, if you haven’t tried it before. Prickly pear blossoms adorn the tops of the cacti’s spiny paddles through spring and early summer. The elegant combination of these ingredients creates a simple but impressive dish, ideal for dinner parties or weekend meals year-round. Substitute prickly pear nectar if you can’t find organic prickly pear juice; just skip the agave nectar and brown sugar.
Recipes reprinted with permission from New Native Kitchen: Celebrating Modern Recipes of the American Indian by Chef Freddie Bitsoie and James O. Fraioli (Abrams, 2021)
Ingredients
- ¼ cup (60 ml) canola oil
- 6 (6- to 8-ounce/170 to 225 g) pork chops
- Salt and freshly cracked black pepper
- 1 medium onion, peeled and julienned
- 1 clove garlic, peeled and minced
- 2 whole cloves
- Prickly Pear Sauce, recipe follows
- 2 grapefruits, cut into supremes, for garnish
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C).
In a large sauté pan over high heat, add the oil. Season the pork chops with salt and pepper and add to the pan when the oil is hot. Note: Do not crowd the pan or the chops will steam instead of sear; work in batches if necessary. Sear the chops for 2 to 3 minutes on each side, or until golden brown. Remove the chops from the pan and transfer to a baking sheet. Set aside. Reduce the heat to medium-low and add the onion, garlic and cloves. Slowly caramelize the onion until golden brown, about 25 minutes. To avoid burning the onion, add a little water to the pan in ¼-cup (60 ml) increments as you cook. While the onions are caramelizing, place the chops in the oven until fully cooked and their internal temperature reaches 165°F (75°C), 20 to 25 minutes.
When the chops and onions are finished cooking, transfer the chops to a serving platter. Remove and discard the cloves. Spoon the onion mixture over the chops along with the prickly pear sauce. Garnish with the grapefruit supremes and serve immediately.
About this recipe
Recipe reprinted with permission from New Native Kitchen: Celebrating Modern Recipes of the American Indian by Chef Freddie Bitsoie and James O. Fraioli (Abrams, 2021).
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