Matt Abdoo’s Pork Chop That Beat Bobby Flay
Recipe Serves 6
This week’s Sunday Supper recipe is from Matt Abdoo, best-selling author of Pig Beach BBQ Cookbook: Smoked, Grilled, Roasted, and Sauced. He is the Executive Chef & Partner of Pig Beach BBQ restaurants, and this is the recipe he cooked that Beat Bobby Flay. The brining, smoking, grilling and glazing creates a tender, deliciously flavored pork chop.
While smoking the pork chop adds that indefinable extra something, if you don’t have a smoker or want to eliminate that step, brine and grill as directed – you just may have to grill the chops for a bit longer.
A cause that is important to the team at Pig Beach BBQ is The Jeff Michner Foundation. Established after Jeff Michner, former Executive Chef at Pig Beach BBQ died suddenly, the foundation helps people going through grief and raises money for scholarships for high school students. In addition, Pig Beach BBQ and the foundation keep Jeff’s memory alive by organizing the annual Jeff Michner BBQ Benefit at Pig Beach, which raises funds through a community of chefs and pitmasters. This year’s fundraiser is on April 25th and will feature thirty of the best pitmasters and chefs from across the US. The FinaMill team is thrilled to support and participate in this year’s benefit, helping bring fresh-ground flavor to a community dedicated to healing and education. Support the foundation and this important cause if you can. Because food is love.
Ingredients To Cook the Pork Chops
- 6 (16-ounce) bone-in pork chops
- 1 gallon of Standard Brin (See directions below)
- 1 cup All Purpose Barbecue Seasoning (See recipe)
- 1 cup Peach Habanero Jam (See recipe)
Ingredients for the Standard Brine
- 1 gallon of cold water
- 2 cups of kosher salt
- 2 cups of sugar
Complete the Flavor:
Directions To Cook the Pork Chops
Pat the chops dry with paper towels and place them in a large nonreactive container with a lid.
Add the brine, taking care that it covers the meat entirely.
Transfer to the refrigerator and let chops brine for at least 1 hour or up to 8 hours.
Remove chops from the refrigerator and drain off all the brine.
Pat the chops dry with paper towels and evenly dust both sides of the chops with the barbeque seasoning.
Set aside to rest at room temperature for 30 minutes.
While the chops are resting, preheat the smoker.
Smoke the chops until lightly flavored, then remove them from the smoker and set aside to rest.
While chops are resting, clean and oil the grill grate and preheat the grill, setting up high- and low-heat zones.
Place chops in the high-heat zone, putting them all in the same direction at a 45-degree angle to the vertical grate.
Grill for 2 minutes.
Turn chops 90 degrees onto an unused section of the grill and grill for an additional 2 minutes.
Turn the chops over, placing them as above on another unused section of the high-heat zone.
Repeat the same grilling process on the second side.
When both sides are beautifully marked, transfer the chops to the low-heat zone of the grill.
Spoon a dollop of the jam onto each chop.
Close the lid and grill for another 5 minutes or until the internal temperature reaches 145°F and the chops are nicely glazed.
Remove the chops from the grill and transfer them to a large serving platter.
Set aside to rest for 5 minutes.
Using a sharp knife, cut the chops into thin slices against the grain. Serve immediately with the remaining jam on the side.
Directions For Brine
Fill a large container with water. Add salt and sugar and stir to help them dissolve.
Let the mixture sit for about 15 minutes and then stir again.
The brine will look cloudy at the beginning but as the salt and sugar dissolve and the brine sits, it will become clear.
About Matt Abdoo
Matt Abdoo is an award-winning pitmaster, classically trained chef and Executive Chef & Partner of the critically acclaimed Pig Beach BBQ restaurants, with locations in Queens, New York, and West Palm Beach, Florida.
Formerly the Chef de Cuisine at Del Posto in NYC, he is a frequent guest on NBC's TODAY and a Food Network personality seen on Beat Bobby Flay, Kitchen Expedition and Kitchen Crash. Known for merging fine dining techniques with high-quality, "low and slow barbeque," Matt is the author of Pig Beach BBQ Cookbook: Smoked, Grilled, Roasted, and Sauced (HarperCollins). To learn more about Pig Beach BBQ, follow Matt on Instagram @mattabdoo.
About The Jeff Michner Foundation
The Michner Family founded The Jeff Michner Foundation in 2018 to honor Pig Beach BBQ's executive chef, Jeff Michner, who died suddenly at 36, leaving a wife and young daughter.
The foundation supports families managing loss and grief and provides scholarships to graduating high school students with a love for cooking and golf - two of Jeff’s biggest passions in life. In addition, Pig Beach BBQ and the foundation keep Jeff’s memory alive by organizing the annual Jeff Michner BBQ Benefit at Pig Beach.
