Vietnamese Style Pork Chops with Kale and Cabbage Salad

I don't usually get excited about pork chops. Tenderloin - yes. Chops? Not so much. And Paddy [usually] tries to hide his disappointment when I make pork in general. But we eat A LOT of chicken and sometimes you gotta change up the routine a little. I made this a few weeks ago and we were both blown away. I used boneless chops and marinated the hell out of them. The sugar caramelized when these were on the grill and they were incredibly tasty over this salad. Adapted from Food and Wine.

1 large shallot or a small onion, finely chopped

3 garlic cloves, chopped

1/4 cup packed brown sugar

1/4 cup fish sauce

2 tbsp soy sauce

2 tbsp vegetable oil

2 tsp black pepper

4 pork chops - bone in or out

2 scallions, thinly sliced

Salad greens (I preferred kale for this)

1/2 English cucumber, sliced

1 cup cabbage or cole slaw mix
Fresh basil and mint if you have it (or either)

1/4 cup olive oil

2 tsp lime juice

1/2 tsp honey

Salt & pepper

1. Mix the ingredients through the black pepper (blend or put in food processor if you can). Transfer to a ziplock, add pork, and marinate for 1 - 12 hrs. I highly recommend doing this first thing in the morning for dinner.

2. Heat grill to medium high. Remove chops from marinade and season with salt and pepper. Grill the chops turning once until lightly charred, about two mins per side.

3. Combine your greens and cabbage with the scallions and cucumber. Make the dressing by mixing the olive oil, lime juice, honey and S&P. Toss salad with dressing and serve the pork, sliced, on top.