Sautéed Pork Chops with Kale

This is one of Paul's favorites and the most-often demanded. It's delicious garlic-lemony (we recently discovered what a great combination this is) and its simplicity is evident in the 5 ingredients, 6 if you count salt and pepper seasonings.

Last year my Grandparents Lynette and Jimmy turned me on to kale from their garden. Kale is a wonderful vegetable, similar to broccoli and cabbage, and goes very well with pork. I love it because it keeps for a really long time in the fridge and is similar in nutritional content to spinach. It's heavy in antioxidants, good for lowering cholesterol and inflammation, and heavy on vitamins C, A, and K! Its amazing! It's also like spinach because it wilts when you cook it. One whole bunch of it seems like a lot but it shrinks down after its been heated for a few minutes. We are always on the lookout for good kale recipes because this packs such a heavy nutritional punch and is fairly cheap at the grocery store. It is generally less expensive than spinach and will keep in your fridge longer.

Ingredients:

Large bunch of kale
Olive oil
Center-cut bone-in pork chops (we use boneless chops too and they work just fine)
3 cloves of finely chopped garlic
1 lemon, juiced
Salt & pepper

Instructions:

Cut stems and spines from the kale leaves, then roughly chop. Wash well but don't dry, and set aside.

In a large skillet over med-high, heat enough oil to cover the bottom of the pan.

Season pork with salt and pepper, and sauté until cooked through. I've found that it usually takes about 5 minutes on each side, and its best to cut one piece in the middle to make sure its cooked through. Transfer to a plate and cover loosely with foil to keep warm.

Add one more tablespoon of oil to the skillet. Add garlic and cook until golden, about 1 minute. Add kale and sauté until tender. My biggest skillet isn't very big so I add the kale in portions. The first portion I put a good handful in, and as it cooks it shrinks, so I stir the shrunken kale to the side and add some more fresh kale, and continue in this way, until it all fits in the pan. Using this method, sauté the kale for about 10 minutes until its tender and a bright saturated green color. Then sprinkle with the lemon juice, and serve with the pork chops.

We like to eat this with rice, and for me and Paul it makes a complete meal. Something about the kale has a hint of oriental flavor to it so rice goes pretty well with it.

I found this recipe at http://www.countryliving.com/recipefinder/sauteed-pork-chops-kale-recipe-clv1010?click=rec_sr and I've pretty much used the same recipe word for word, and added some of my own comments and tips.