1001 Low-Carb Recipes: Hundreds of Delicious Recipes From Dinner to Dessert That Let You Live Your Low-Carb Lifestyle and Never Look Back (101 page)

1 small onion, chopped

1 can (14½ ounces, or 410 g) sauerkraut, drained

2 tablespoons (3 g) Splenda

¼ teaspoon dry mustard

2 tablespoons (30 ml) dry white wine

¼ teaspoon blackstrap molasses

Fry the bacon until just barely crisp in a heavy skillet over medium heat. Drain and set aside.

Pour off all but about 2 tablespoons (30 ml) of the grease and brown the chops in it over medium heat. (You want them to have just a little color on each side.) Remove from the skillet and set aside.

Put the onion, sauerkraut, Splenda, mustard, wine, and molasses in the skillet and stir for a moment to blend. Crumble in the bacon and stir again, just for a moment. Place the chops on top of the sauerkraut mixture, turn the heat to low, and cover the pan. Simmer for 45 minutes.

Yield:
3 servings

Each with 11 grams of carbohydrates and 4 grams of fiber, for a total of 7 grams of usable carbs and 27 grams of protein.

An unusual sauce of tart cherries and a crunch of toasted almonds enhance these pork chops. Don’t expect this sauce to be cherry-red, though, unless you add a drop or two of food coloring.

4 thin pork chops, about 18 ounces (500 g) total

Salt and pepper

1 tablespoon (15 ml) olive oil

½ cup (55 g) canned tart cherries in water (pie cherries)

1 tablespoon (15 ml) wine vinegar

¼ teaspoon dry mustard

teaspoon ground cloves

1½ tablespoons (2 g) Splenda

teaspoon guar or xanthan

cup (40 g) slivered almonds

½ tablespoon butter

Sprinkle salt and pepper over the chops lightly on both sides and start browning them in the oil in a heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Give them about 5 minutes per side. While that’s happening, put the cherries, vinegar, mustard, cloves, Splenda, and guar or xanthan in a blender and purée the whole thing together. (If you’d prefer to keep the cherries whole, you could just mix everything together well. I like it puréed.)

It’s time to turn the chops now! While the chops are browning on their second side, start browning the almonds in the butter in a small skillet over medium heat. Stir frequently so they don’t burn; you just want a touch of gold. When the almonds are toasted, remove the pan from the heat.

When the second side of the chops is browned—again, after about 5 minutes—pour the cherry sauce over them, turn the heat to medium-low, and cover the skillet with a tilted lid. Let the whole thing simmer for 5 minutes and serve. Scrape the sauce from the skillet over the chops and top each with toasted almonds.

Yield:
4 servings

Each with 6 grams of carbohydrates and 1 gram of fiber, for a total of 5 grams of usable carbs and 22 grams of protein.

Pork and apples are a great combination. Ever since I stopped eating applesauce, I’ve been looking for a way to have this combination of flavors

2 pork chops, 1 inch (2.5 cm) thick (about 8 ounces, or 225 g each)

2 tablespoons (30 ml) olive oil

¼ cup (60 ml) cider vinegar

1½ tablespoons (2 g) Splenda

½ teaspoon soy sauce

1 small onion, thinly sliced

Put the oil in a heavy skillet and brown the pork chops in the oil.

When both sides are brown, stir together the vinegar, Splenda, and the soy sauce and pour the mixture over the chops. Scatter the onion on top.

Cover and turn the heat to low. Let the chops simmer, turning at least once, for 45 minutes or until the pan is almost dry. Serve the chops with the onions and scrape all the nice, syrupy pan liquid over them.

Yield:
2 servings

Each with 8 grams of carbohydrates and 1 gram of fiber, for a total of 7 grams of usable carbs and 36 grams of protein.

4 pork chops, totaling about 1½ pounds (680 g)

1 bottle (16 ounces, or 480 ml) peach-flavored Fruit
₂
O

1 tablespoon (18 g) salt

¼ teaspoon blackstrap molasses

¼ teaspoon orange extract

1 clove garlic

1 tablespoon (15 ml) olive oil

1 teaspoon ground rosemary

½ teaspoon ground or rubbed sage

½ teaspoon dried marjoram

teaspoon cayenne

In a flat, shallow dish—a large glass casserole dish is perfect—combine the Fruit
₂
O, salt, molasses, and orange extract. Stir until the salt is dissolved. (Heating helps with this—you can open the bottle of Fruit
₂
O and microwave it in a separate bowl for a minute before pouring it in the dish or you can microwave the whole batch of brine, if your dish is microwavable. Neither is essential, it just helps the salt dissolve.) Place the chops in the brine (make sure it’s cooled to lukewarm first), make sure they’re submerged, and stick the whole thing in the fridge. Let them sit for about 3 hours.

Okay, time to grill your pork. First start your grill heating—set a gas grill to medium-high; with a charcoal grill you’ll want to let your coals cook down to a medium heat. Crush the garlic and mix it with the olive oil in a small dish. In another dish combine the rosemary, sage, marjoram, and cayenne. Then pull the chops out of the brine and put them on a plate; discard the brine. Pat the chops dry. Rub them all over with the garlic and olive oil mixture, then the herb mixture.

Grill chops about 12 minutes per side or until there’s no pink left in the center and then serve.

Yield:
4 servings

Each serving will have 1 gram of carbohydrate, a trace of fiber, 26 grams of protein.

The balsamic vinegar gives these a tangy-sweet flavor.

2 or 3 pork rib chops, 2 inches (5 cm) thick

2 tablespoons (30 ml) olive oil

¾ cup (180 ml) chicken broth

3 tablespoons (45 ml) balsamic vinegar

3 cloves garlic, crushed

¼ teaspoon guar or xanthan

Put the oil in a large, heavy skillet over medium-high heat and sear the chops in the oil until well-browned on both sides. Add the broth, vinegar, and garlic.

Cover the skillet, turn the heat to low, and let the chops simmer for 1 hour. Remove the chops to a serving platter or serving plates and put the liquid from the pan into a blender. Add the guar or xanthan, run the blender for a few moments, and pour the thickened sauce over the chops.

Yield:
2 or 3 servings

Each with 2 grams of carbohydrates, a trace of fiber, and 36 grams of protein.

Okay, it doesn’t really have gingersnaps in it, but it is sweet and spicy and good!

4 thin pork chops, about 18 ounces (500 g) total

1 tablespoon (15 ml) olive oil

½ cup (120 ml) cider vinegar

½ teaspoon pepper

¼ teaspoon ground cloves

1 tablespoon (16.5 g) tomato paste

3 tablespoons (4.5 g) Splenda

2 teaspoons grated ginger

2 teaspoons lemon juice

½ teaspoon salt or Vege-Sal

¼ cup (30 g) finely diced celery, including leaves

In a heavy skillet over medium-high heat, start browning the chops in the oil. While that’s happening, put the vinegar, pepper, cloves, tomato paste, Splenda, ginger, lemon juice, and salt in a blender and run it for a second or two to blend.

When the chops are browned on both sides—about 5 minutes per side—pour the sauce over them, scatter the celery over the whole thing, turn the heat to low, and cover with a tilted lid. Let it simmer for 5 minutes and then serve. Don’t forget to scrape the extra sauce out of the pan and over the chops!

Yield:
4 servings

Each with 5 grams of carbohydrates, a trace of fiber, and 20 grams of p

4 or 5 large pork chops, 1 to 1½ inches (2.5 to 4 cm) thick

½ cup (120 ml) soy sauce