Pork Chop Carbonara

Pork

What we have here is the recipe for my Braaied Pork Chop Carbonara. I obviously found inspiration for this one in the classic Italian pasta from Rome, the Bacon Carbonara. It is interesting to note that Carbonaro is the Italian word for Charcoal Burner. Now as we all know, there is one thing better than a charcoal burner, and that is a wood burner, otherwise known as a braai fire. The original recipe from Rome uses Italian bacon like guanciale or pancetta but to my mind a braaied South African pork chop is vastly superior in quality, taste and texture so what we have here is an improvement on the original recipe. The recipe works well with both fresh and dry pasta, but as egg is a core ingredient my personal feeling is that fresh pasta works better, so go for that if you can hold of it.

Ingredients

  • 4 Pork loin chops (deboned) or 4 Pork Neck Chops
  • Salt and Pepper
  • 1 tot butter
  • 1 tot Olive oil
  • 2 garlic cloves crushed
  • 250 g mushrooms, sliced
  • 3 eggs, beaten
  • 125 ml Parmesan cheese, grated
  • 250 ml fresh cream
  • 400g – 500g Linguini or Spaghetti
  • Extra Parmesan for garnish
  • Fresh Parsley for garnish

Method

  1. Braai the pork chops over medium-hot coal for about 12 minutes until done. Pork chops should be braaied until medium, with an internal temperature of 71 °C. Season with salt and pepper before or during the braai.
  2. Meanwhile, cook the pasta in a pot of boiling salted water according to the instructions on the packet. Use fresh pasta if possible.
  3. Heat the butter and olive oil in a pan and fry the mushrooms for a few minutes, add the garlic and fry until the mushrooms are soft.
  4. Beat the eggs and properly mix that with the cream. Also mix the grated cheese with that.
  5. Remove the pasta from the heat when cooked and drain. Add the pasta to the same pot or pan as the mushrooms and pour over the mixture of beaten eggs, cream and cheese while the pasta is still hot and mix well. The heat of the pasta and mushrooms will cook the egg. This is a signature part of this dish.
  6. Taste and season with salt and pepper.
  7. Diagonally slice the pork chops into thin slivers and serve on top of the pasta. Garnish with extra parmesan and fresh parsley.

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