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Creole Pork Steaks

Source of Recipe

From "Pig: King of the Southern Table" by James Villas


Recipe Introduction

"Sometimes called 'picnic chops' in Creole Louisiana (referring to the lower part of a pig shoulder marketed as a 'fresh picnic' cut of meat), blade steaks easily adapt to any of the assertive secondary ingredients and seasonings typical of Creole and Cajun styles of cooking. Even after 1 ½ hours of simmering, the sapid cooking liquid in this recipe will most likely still be watery (depending on the amount of juice in the canned tomatoes), so be sure to boil it down slightly at the end to a nicely thickened sauce that will cling to the steaks."

List of Ingredients

â—¦ 3 tablespoons peanut oil
â—¦ 2 pork blade steaks, about ¾ inch thick
â—¦ 1 large onion, finely chopped
â—¦ 1 medium green bell pepper, seeded and finely chopped
â—¦ 1 clove garlic, minced
â—¦ ½ cup dry white wine
â—¦ One 16-ounce can crushed tomatoes with juice
â—¦ ¼ teaspoon sugar
â—¦ 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
â—¦ Tabasco sauce to taste
â—¦ 1 bay leaf
â—¦ Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste


Recipe

In a large, deep skillet, heat half the oil over moderate heat, add the steaks, and brown on both sides. Transfer the steaks to a plate and discard the fat from the skillet.

Add the remaining oil to the skillet, add the onion, bell pepper, and garlic and stir till lightly browned, about 8 minutes. Add the wine and bring to a boil, scraping browned bits off the bottom of the pan. Return the steaks to the pan and spoon some of the onion and bell pepper over them. Add the tomatoes and their juice, the sugar, Worcestershire, Tabasco, bay leaf, salt and pepper, and enough water to just cover. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer the steaks till they are very tender, about 1 ½ hours. If the sauce is too watery, increase the heat to high and boil down to thicken.

To serve, cut the steaks in half and spoon hot sauce over each portion.

Makes 4 servings