Tony Zentgraf
This recipe for Marinated Pork Chop with Peach Salsa screams summer. Fresh peaches, fresh tomatillos, fresh hatch chiles and fresh corn all grilled off over charcoal to bring out their maximum sweetness and flavors. Charred Tomatillo Salsa recipe is easy to make too!
Peach season is upon us!
Peaches are just arriving in the stores and many are on the underripe side but they will usually ripen in about 5-14 days. For this recipe, look for peaches that are just ripening. A bit soft to the touch but firm. Don’t pick overripe peaches as grilling them will be difficult.
Charred Tomatillo Salsa & Tequila
This marinade and salsa play off of each other in many ways. The Charred Tomatillo Salsa has the fruitiness of the tomatillos, some lime juice and hatch chiles in that recipe. The marinade adds Cazadores Resposado which has flavor notes of woody, vanilla and tropical notes.
The salsa gets smoky charred notes from grilling the corn, chiles and peaches. Adding a touch of lime, cilantro and ancho chile powder adds a tangy, warmth with a familiar feeling of a salsa. Serving some additional warm tomatillo salsa to the plate ties the flavors together.
Just like in Chile Verde, the addition of tomatillo salsa to the pot adds to the complexity of the final dish. The same applies here, marinating the pork up to 5 hours will impart some of that fruitiness into the pork. Charring the pork over charcoal will give additional flavors to the meat.
Have Hou Ever Wondered Where Peaches Came From?
According to the Royal Horticultural Society, the botanical name for peaches is Prunus persica. Translated from Latin means, Persian Plum. Indicating it came from Persia or modern day Iran. But genetic testing on peaches have determined that they originated from China. Peaches have been harvested in China since the Neolithic period, 10,000-4,500 BC.
The silk road trades introduced the peaches to the middle east. Alexander the Great is credited with bringing the fruit to Europe but it wasn’t until the 17th century that it as introduced to England. Even then it was viewed as a rare treat.
Throughout history, peaches have been a cultural influence. From Chinese mythology to Japanese ancient legends, peaches have found their way into art and stories. Even today when you go to a European museum you will find peaches in artwork from Caravaggio, Renoir, Monet, Manet and Van Gogh. In all eastern and western cultures, peaches have links to believing they symbolize love, health, beauty fertility and longevity.
Peaches Have Some Interesting Relatives
Peaches are in the rose family, plus are closely related to almonds as well. Maybe the close genetic makeup to roses and almonds give the blossoms such an aromatic scent. Peaches are often thought of being used in sweet applications but peaches pair well with meat and can often be found in other culinary applications as well.
I hope you enjoy this recipe Marinated Pork Chop with Peach Salsa with the flavors of summer.
Enjoy!
Tomatillo & Tequila Pork Chops with Peach, Chile & Corn Salsa
Print RecipeRecipe Multiplier
- 4 ea Bone in Pork Chops
- 1 tsp Kosher Salt
- 1 tsp Black Pepper
Marinade
- 4 ea Garlic Clove minced
- ¼ cup Cilantro Chopped
- ¼ cup Onion minced
- 3 tbsp Agave Syrup
- ⅓ cup Tequila (I used Cazadores Resposado)
- 1 cup` Tomatillo Salsa (can used store bought but recommend making your own and freezing in smaller batches to pull and use when needed)
- 1 ea Juice of 1 Lime (if your tomatillo salsa homemade or store bought is heavy on lime you may want to adjust the amount of lime up or down)
- 1 tsp Kosher Salt
Grilled Corn and Peach Salsa
- 2 ea Grilled Ears of Corn in the husk
- 2 ea Grilled or Roasted Hatch Chile (Medium to Hot depending on your tolerance to heat)
- 3 ea Peaches halved pit removed. Grilled Peaches should not be over ripe, look for peaches that are ripening with some give when you press but not hard.
- 3 ea Scallions 1/4" chopped
- ¼ cup Picked Cilantro Leaves
- ½ tsp Ancho Chile Powder
- 1 ea Juice of Lime
Instructions
Preparing the Pork Marinade
- Make the Tomatillo Salsa if needed.
- Chop the garlic, cilantro and onions.
- Combine all ingredients for the marinade and mix to combine.
- Adjust seasoning with additional lime and salt if needed.
- Marinate the pork for 3 hours to 5 hours. Over marinating may toughen the pork due to the acids in the marinade.
Grilling the Peaches, Corn and Hatch Chiles
- Preheat your grill to high, if using charcoal grill set the grill grate at a lower setting to get maximum heat to blister the chiles and char the corn.
- Place the corn and hatch chiles on the grill grate. Char the chiles to develop blistering. The corn husks should begin to darken, some blackening is ok bit you don’t want to set them on fire.
- Once the corn has darkened and has developed a nice corn aroma check some kernels to see if they are soft to your liking. Remove from the heat.
- Hatch chiles should be removed once they are blackened. The skin of the chile may look like it is separating but not blackening. That is ok, it is a sign that the chile is steaming and the skin is ready to be removed from the grill.
- Cover the chiles in a bowl with plastic wrap to allow them to steam.
- Cut the peaches in half and remove the pit. If you are lucky the peaches are a freestone and it will just fall out. If not use a paring knife and cut around the pit to assist with it being removed. Sometimes a pair of clean pliers can assist with removing the pit.
- Brush the peaches with some vegetable oil on the flesh side.
- Over a medium high heat on the grill, place the peaches flesh side down. Allow the peaches to sit over the heat for 2-3 minutes to develop grill marks.
- Using a bbq spatula or tongs, gently loosen the peaches from the grill grates. Turn the peaches from a 10 o’clock position to a 2 o’clock position.
- Once the peaches have grilled and you have developed grill marks. The peaches should be softened somewhat.
- Remove the peaches from the grill and let cool.
Assembling the Grilled Peach and Corn Salsa
- Slice the corn from the cob.
- Dice the peaches into 1/2" dice.
- Skin and seed the hatch chiles. Dice into 1/2" dice
- Chop the scallions to 1/4"
- Chop the cilantro.
- Combine the corn, peaches, chiles, scallions and cilantro in a bowl.
- Add the ancho chile powder, lime juice and mix to combine. Adjust seasoning as needed with salt and additional ancho chile powder if needed.
Grilling the Pork Chops
- Preheat the grill to a high heat.
- Place the pork chops on the grill over the heat.
- Once the chops have developed grill marks, rotate the pork from the 10 o’clock position to the 2 o’clock position. Just as you have done for the peaches.
- Once diamond shaped grill marks have been created, turn over and cook until the pork reaches 135°
- Let the pork rest for 5-10 minutes. Serve with some additional tomatillo salsa & the grilled peach and corn salsa. Enjoy!
