Tropical Pork

We've been eating a lot of rice. Between the risottos and steamed rices, you would think the hubby and I would be riced out by now. You'd be wrong though. Ok, that's not really true. I'm starting to get a bit sick of all the rice, but the hubby could eat it at literally every meal and never be bored. Come to think of it, he feels that way about a lot of foods. Sandwiches, potato chips, jerk chicken. Yeah, I can't think of anything he'd actually ever get sick of.

I've made this Tropical Pork dish twice in one week. When I asked if my hubby was ok with having it for dinner last night he said, "Ooo yeah! I really liked that one." It's nice to know that I'll always have him as a fan of my cooking. The first time I made this was last weekend when his younger sister spent the weekend with us. She'll be 16 in just a couple of days so check back here soon for her birthday cupcakes that I'll be making for her. Lucky for us, she's not picky. There are very few things that she won't eat which means I get to be a little more daring than if their 13 year old sister was over.

Of course when I set out to make this for dinner, I didn't realize that I was short a few items. No onions on hand, almost out of ketchup, no garlic or onion salt to be found. That's ok though. My improvisations actually worked out really well. I was able to substitute half of the ketchup with worchestershire sauce and we were good to go (I realize tht it could have gone horribly wrong by using 1/6 cup of good old Lea & Perrins, but it actually tasted so good that I did it that way last night even though I had more than enough ketchup). I used the dried minced onions and a bit of sea salt to make up for the lack of onion and then added an extra clove of garlic.

I'm going on a rice strike for the next week or so. If I should happen to say or do anything strange in the next couple of days, just know that I'm detoxing from the rice and should be normal again soon.

Tropical Pork with Steamed Rice
Recipe from All Recipes

1/3 cup ketchup
2 tablespoons prepared mustard
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 tablespoon cider vinegar
1 1/2 teaspoons soy sauce
1/8 teaspoon garlic salt
1/8 teaspoon onion salt
dash cayenne pepper
4 boneless pork loin chops, cubed
salt and pepper to taste
1/4 cup chopped onion
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/3 cup water
1/4 cup pineapple tidbits
Hot cooked rice

1. In a saucepan, combine the first eight ingredients. Cover and simmer until sugar is dissolved, about 10 minutes. Season pork chops with salt and pepper.
2. Add pork cubes, onion, and garlic to the pan with the sauce until meat is browned. Add water. Cover and cook over medium-low heat for 20-25 minutes or until the meat is no longer pink, adding more water if needed. Stir in pineapple and heat through. Serve over rice.