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Tag: apricot jam

Apple & Apricot Glazed Pork Chops

Another great meal for the holidays…unnamed

Brine

  • 2 cups apple cider
  • 3 tablespoons salt
  • 1 pound center cut pork chops

Transfer the cider and salt to a deep airtight container and add the pork chops. Keep over night or at least for 4 to 5 hours in the fridge. Take the chops out and soak on a paper towel till dry.

Glaze

  • 1 cup apple cider
  • 1 tablespoon apricot jam
  • 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
  • 1 teaspoon salt

Bring the cider to a boil in a small saucepan and simmer for about 4 to 5 minutes. Add the apricot jam, paprika and salt. Mix well and cook for another 5 minutes. Turn heat off and keep aside.

  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • Sprinkle with salt

Heat a wide frying pan with the olive oil and add the pork chops. Sprinkle with salt. Saute on medium high heat on one side for 2 to 3 minutes. Flip the chops over and add the glaze. Cook for about 4 minutes on medium heat. Turn off and serve with the glaze spooned over the pork chops.

Balsamic Grilled Chicken with Tomato Salad

Balsamic Grilled Chicken I would make this dish if you want to impress someone. It looks beautiful with lots of vivid summer colors. It is an overall winner of a recipe. It is super easy to make and best of all it is very healthy, low in carbs.. but the important thing is that you don’t feel that it is low in carbs. My main goal as the cook in the house is to incorporate as many healthy and varied ingredients as I can in any meal I serve.

Tomatoes are in abundance right now and I love buying the grape variety. They are very sweet and burst in the mouth and best of all, delicious! I cut them up and added some salt, garlic, olive oil and basil. I let the juicy tomatoes sit for a while so they can get even juicier. I marinated chicken breasts that I pounded super thin with balsamic vinegar, salt and pepper. You can buy thin breast cutlets in the store but they are more expensive than the regular breast. I quickly grilled the chicken.. it literally took two minutes on one side on a very hot grill. I also put together an arugula salad with a delicious homemade apricot dressing.

The meal was simply delicious… perfect for a summer barbecue…
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Orange Pork Chops with Smoked Paprika

Orange Pork Chops with Smoked Paprika It is smoked paprika week.. all the recipes have the delicious spice. I have decided on taking the spice with me if I ever get stranded on a deserted island.

I bought some center cut, thin pork chops. I don’t like making them too often since they tend to dry out very quickly- but then I realized if I brine them, they come out super juicy.

For the brine, I mixed orange juice, apricot jam, vinegar and of course smoked paprika. The liquid has a delicious sweet, savory and tangy component- perfect for a sauce for the pork chops.

I marinated them for a few hours in the liquid. I then browned them and added the liquid back. I realized, cooking them in the liquid keeps them soft and tender. The chops came out delicious. I roasted potatoes on the side with some garlic powder, salt and of course, smoked paprika. I also roasted asparagus on the side and I had a perfectly balanced meal.

Everyone enjoyed the meal with a yummy glass of red wine…

  • 4 to 5 center cup pork chops
  • ¼ cup apricot jam, softened in microwave
  • ½ cup orange juice
  • 2 garlic cloves, grated
  • 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
  • 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
  • 1 teaspoon salt

Mix the jam, juice, garlic, vinegar, paprika and salt in a small bowl. Add the chops and mixture to a zip lock bag and marinate for 4 to 5 hours. Save the marinade for later.

  • 2 tablespoons olive oil

Heat a non-stick pan with the oil. Brown the pork chops on both sides on high heat. Take out of the pan and add the marinade. Bring to a boil and add the pork chops. Cook for a few minutes till the chops are done (careful not to overcook). Serve the chops with the sauce, potatoes and asparagus.

Pan Seared Cod with Mango Sauce and Bok Choy

Cod with Mango Sauce2Here is another recipe using one of my favorite ingredients- mangoes. I bought some cod for dinner and decided to make a mango sauce.

I cut up two mangoes and cooked them with garlic, shallots. I added apricot jam (yum!), rice wine vinegar and garlic chili sauce. Using all the delicious ingredients resulted in an unbelievable sauce.

I sauteed the fish simply with salt and olive oil- delicious and very quick.

Bok choy is one of our favorite vegetables and I try to incorporate it lots of dinners. In this case, I sauteed them with olive oil and salt. I served the bok choy on the side with the fish and the mango sauce. I made brown rice and it was a perfect meal. It was delicious, quick and healthy- what more do you want??

Try the pan seared cod with mango sauce and bok choy- you will love it…
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Beef Stir Fry with Apricot Sauce

apricot-beef-stirfryI love making a stir fry at home. We all love Chinese food and our favorite is Hunan Spring in Springfield, NJ. We go there quite often and Sia loves the Chicken and Corn Soup. The food is delicious but it is quite greasy and there is really no way for me to know what all is in the  food. I especially love the sweet and sour or tangy sauces that go with the different meats they serve. Mostly we get Mango Chicken and Shredded Pork in a Garlic Sauce. When I make the dishes at home, the sauces usually include brown sugar or honey for the sweetness and rice vinegar to add the sourness. 
Lately I have been into cooking with apricots and nectarines. Since they are in season now, I see them every where I go. I had seen a stir fry recipe that used nectarines with beef. I read the recipe and envisioned a sauce made out of apricot jam mixed with soy sauce and chili sauce- hmm, yum! I couldn’t wait to make it. I went to Whole Foods to buy some beef suitable for a stir fry and decided to buy a red pepper as well. I love the bright colors in a stir fry- and you eat with your eyes first. I marinated the beef in the afternoon thinking I would cook the dish in the evening. We ended up going out to eat that evening so the beef sat in the fridge overnight. I cooked it the next evening and I have to say, it was extra tasty because of the extra long marination time. I am sure it would be tasty even if it is marinated for a few hours- I think the key is to get the right cut for a stir fry, I used top round and it worked out very well- great beef flavor.

For the sauce I used the apricot jam and paired it with rice vinegar, soy sauce and the chili garlic sauce. That’s all it really needed- well I definitely had to add the ginger and the garlic- you can’t have Chinese food or really any food without them! It was a delicious sauce- great to use as a pan sauce for chicken or a pork tenderloin. 

One of the reasons I love making a stir fry  is that it can be prepped for in advance- I usually cut and marinate everything in the morning; I put the sauce together as well- I even cook the rice in advance. All I have to do in the evening is put the ingredients in the wok or frying pan and add the sauce. A few things to remember when making a stir fry: first- cut everything into the same small size- so it all cooks at the same time and really fast. Second-Saute everything separately- it keeps all the vegetables crisp- and third- have everything ready since the cooking process doesn’t take very long. 

I cooked brown rice with this dish. I buy the basmati brown rice from Trader Joes which is delicious. The thing to remember with brown rice is that it takes almost double the amount of cooking time than white rice. Also, white rice gets double the amount of liquid- for brown rice, I use a little bit more. For example: I used one cup of uncooked rice with three cups of liquid. Since the rice takes longer, more liquid is necessary. 

My daughter loved the stir fry especially with the brown rice. I thought it was absolutely delicious- especially the tangy sauce. We had our usual Malbec Rose with the dinner and it was fabulous as usual!

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