Weeknight dinner just got a little spicier. These golden brown pork cutlets are crispy, crunchy, and perfect with a big spoonful of tangy cherry pepper relish.
Short week, short week, short week, YEAH! I love a good short week, man. Of course the long weekend was great, but when you wake up and it totally feels like any other Monday but then you realize it’s actually freaking Tuesday? Well that’s just delightful if you ask me.
This particular short week is going to be a busy one for me. So instead of blathering on too long about how the cat has waged war against the printer or how Hannah B actually isn’t the worst bachelorette in the franchise’s sordid history, I’ll just get to the point.
Crispy Pork Cutlets with Spicy Cherry Pepper Relish
This recipe is my new favorite. I love it so much I would definitely stand outside its house blasting Peter Gabriel from my boombox (if you don’t get that reference – congratulations, you are young). It pairs one of my all time favorite things – crunchy, fried, golden brown goodness with a spicy, tangy cherry pepper relish that may give ranch a run for its money as the condiment to beat.
It’s super weeknight friendly as a good bit of the work can be done ahead of time. But it’s delicious and impressive enough that you could totally throw this on the menu for a low key dinner party with friends (or enemies if that’s how you roll). Bonus – the cherry pepper relish goes well with nearly all savory things – dolloped onto scrambled eggs, spread on a sandwich, mixed into mayo for a quick, spicy dip, or even mixed into a marinade for another easy meal.
How to make pork cutlets
Cutlets have definitely gotten some bad press over the years. They can be dry, tough, and flavorless for sure. But just a few small changes can turn them from boring to brilliant.
- Start with good pork (or chicken or whatever). It’s tempting to buy something that’s already been “cutletized” for you, but honestly it’s not worth the premium you’ll pay. Often this meat is mysterious in nature and origin and I’d rather take my aggression out on a pork chop myself than risk getting something of sub par quality.
- Season the meat, not the breading. Most of the seasoning in the breading is going to fall off or worse burn when you introduce it to some hot oil. If you season the meat before breading it you will trap all that good flavor on the inside which sounds pretty great to me.
- Panko breadcrumbs = maximum crunch. Panko is a japanese style breadcrumb that is processed in such a way that the crumbs are really more like little flakes. These flakes absorb less grease and stay crisp longer than your traditional American breadcrumb. Luckily panko is available in pretty much every major grocery store I’ve visited in the past five years, so no excuses.
- Give yourself plenty of room to fry. These cutlets are thin and wide – which means they take up of a fair amount of space. So unless you are cooking with an Andre the Giant sized skillet, you’re probably going to need to fry these in batches. Basic rule of thumb is that there should be about an inch of wiggle room on all sides of each cutlet. Good news is that these only see the heat for about two minutes per side, so you could easily fry up two separate batches in under ten minutes.
- Elevate and rest. No, this isn’t advice for a sprained ankle (although it’s good for that too). It’s just a note to say that you can keep these warm in a low oven for upwards of 30 minutes, but to maintain that crispy exterior you MUST transfer your cutlets to a wire rack set in a rimmed baking sheet. This keeps the whole situation elevated so that air can circulate around the pork, keeping it from sogging out.
How to make cherry pepper relish
This stuff is pretty simple. There is a bit of work involved in roasting the cherry tomatoes – but this is mostly just letting the oven do its thing. And the end result is a rich, tangy, spicy, slightly sweet condiment that you’ll want to spread on all the things. Got questions? No problem.
- How spicy is this? On a scale of 1-10 (with 10 being blow your head off, hose me down hot) I’d put this at a six. The roasted tomatoes really help temper the heat though, so if you’re worried you can always up the tomatoes by one cup.
- I can’t find cherry peppers, what can I substitute? Cherry peppers are pretty widely available in most grocery stores (either whole or sliced) but if you need to make a substitution I’d go for a mix of roasted red peppers and pepperoncini or pickled jalapenos.
- What can I use other than cherry tomatoes? Feel free to sub in grape tomatoes (which I clearly did when I took these photos), or roma tomatoes. Just keep in mind that the larger the tomato the longer it will take to roast. You’re looking for the tomato to shrink a bit and lose about half of its water content without being completely shriveled and dry.
- What if I don’t have a food processor? Blend baby blend! You could also hand chop this, but I think it’d take you forever and that you might justifiably hate me.
And now that you’re armed with a solid weeknight dinner recipe and a new sauce that you will definitely want to slather on everything you eat, I shall leave you to your gloriously short week. Enjoy the closeness of Friday, the promise of the weekend, and the fact that Monday pretty much never happened.
In need of more delicious dinners? Check these out.
- One Pan Brown Butter Corn Tortellini
- Chipotle Black Bean Burgers with Cashew Ranch {Vegan}
- Spicy Shrimp Tacos with Charred Corn and Mango Salsa
- Gruyere and Asparagus Dutch Baby Pancake
And if you tried this recipe (or any of them TBH) feel free to leave a happy little star rating a fun comment below, please and thank you!
Crispy Pork with Tomato Cherry Pepper Relish
Crispy pork cutlets with spicy cherry pepper relish is a delicious way to get dinner on the table this week. Crunchy, golden brown pork meets a tangy, fiery, slightly sweet sauce that is good on just about everything.
- Prep Time: 30 Minutes
- Cook Time: 30 Minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour
- Yield: 4 Servings 1x
- Category: Dinner
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
For the tomato cherry pepper relish:
2 C cherry tomatoes
1 tsp kosher salt
1/4 C olive oil
1 jar sliced cherry peppers*, drained, reserving 1 T brine
1 T honey
For the pork cutlets:
4 boneless, center cut pork chops (about 1 inch thick)
2 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp ground black pepper
1/2 C all purpose flour
2 large eggs, beaten with 2 T water
1 C panko breadcrumbs
3 T olive oil
Instructions
For the tomato cherry pepper relish:
Preheat your oven to 400°F. Cut your cherry tomatoes in half and spread onto a rimmed baking sheet in one even layer. Season with 1/2 tsp kosher salt and drizzle with 1 T olive oil. Roast for 25-30 minutes or until the tomatoes have shrunk in size, take on a little color, and shrivel a bit at the edges.
Combine roasted tomatoes, cherry peppers, reserved brine, honey, 1/2 tsp kosher salt, and 3 T olive oil in a food processor. Pulse to chop and mix ingredients. Taste for seasoning and set aside.
For the crispy pork cutlets:
Lay one pork chop on a piece of plastic wrap. Cover with another piece and pound until you reach 1/4 inch thickness. Repeat with remaining pork chops. Discard plastic wrap and season both sides with salt and pepper.
Set up three shallow dishes (pie plates work well for this), one with flour, one with eggs, and one with panko breadcrumbs. Using clean hands, lightly dredge each cutlet in the flour mixture, then in the egg, and then in the breadcrumbs. Make sure to tap off excess flour and egg before moving to the next step. Gently press the breadcrumbs into the surface of each cutlet so they adhere well. Transfer breaded cutlet to a baking sheet and repeat with remaining cutlets.
In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium heat until shimmering but not smoking. Carefully lay cutlets away from you into the oil. There should be steady sizzling and bubbling around the edges, but nothing ferocious – adjust your heat to maintain a steady sizzle. Cook your cutlets on the first side for 2 minutes or until golden brown. Flip and cook on the other side for another 2 minutes. Transfer cooked cutlets to a wire rack set in a rimmed baking sheet and keep warm in a 250°F oven while you fry the rest.
Serve each cutlet with a dollop of cherry pepper relish and a green salad.
Notes
*Make sure not to buy cherry peppers packed oil, but just in a vinegar based brine
If you’re worried about spice levels feel free to up the quantity of tomatoes by 1 cup, or hold back a bit on the cherry peppers
The pork can be pounded up to a day in advance and the relish can be made up to three days ahead.
Keywords: crispy pork cutlets, weeknight dinner, spicy pepper relish, cherry pepper relish, oven roasted tomatoes
I always love your witty pop culture references throughout so 1) I get the Peter Gabriel reference and “In your eyes” is one of my all time fave songs. 2) I really like Hannah as the Bachelorette even though I thought I was going to hate it?! 3) I don’t often have pork but this recipe has me itching for some! Loving that cherry pepper relish on top! SO FRESH! YUM! 🙂
★★★★★
Haylie, I’m so glad you know that reference! Also Hannah is way more ballsy than I thought she would be, which I totally vibe with. I love this with pork, but it would also be great with a chicken cutlet!
First of all,you’ve made me crave cutlets,they look so crispy and wonderful. This whole dish sounds devine- fried and spicy? I’m in!