The Other White Meat

It seems like pork gets a bad wrap - don't eat sausage, don't eat ribs, don't eat ham and whatever you do stay the heck away from bacon!  ...Well, okay ALL pork cuts aren't the healthiest choices, but I say if you're really trying to change your habits to healthier eating (notice - not dieting, especially not fad dieting) then a little indulgence is necessary sometimes, or lookout for that midnight binge on the freezer burned ice cream in the way back of the freezer that you forgot was there, and those last five stale Oreo cookies in the pantry.  Okay, no one lets Oreo cookies sit around long enough to get stale - but you get my point!

Now, there are some pork options out there that maintain a healthier reputation -  tenderloin, loin chops, and lean ham.  Believe it or not - "...Compare pork tenderloin to skinless chicken breast, one of the ideal low fat meats. A three ounce serving of lean pork tenderloin has 102 calories, 2.9 grams of fat and 17.9 grams of protein. A three ounce serving of roasted, skinless chicken breast has 141 calories, 3 grams of fat and 26.4 grams of protein. The pork has 25% fewer calories and it's lower in total fat!"  This excerpt was taken from http://www.webefit.com/articles_100_199/article_180_pork.html.

So last night I decided to go with the loin chop - and I even found a rub that tastes great, is super-easy to make, and has a total weight-watchers point value of 5!  

Chili Crusted Pork Chops:
2 tsp chili powderd
1 1/2 tsp packed light brown sugar
1 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp table salt
1/4 tsp black pepper, freshly ground
20 oz lean pork loin, boneless center-cut chops, four 5 oz pieces (thawed)

Combine all your spices/salt/pepper in a big ziploc bag and mix well.  Toss in your pork loin and coat each piece, rubbing the mixture into the meat.  Grill chops for about 3-4 minutes on each side, or until meat has reached an internal temperature of 160 degrees.  Or if you haven't reached grill weather yet, throw them on the George Foreman for the same amount of time.  MMMMM!!!

For my sides, I threw some Steamfresh Sugar Snap Peas in the microwave and of course you can't serve pork chops without applesauce!  I also made up some cheesy-rice because it's a favorite around here!

Cheesy Rice:
(SUPER-easy)
Just make however many servings of white, minute rice as you usually would for your family size.  Cook according to instructions on the box.  After the rice soaks up the water, add a few slices of American cheese (I make 2 cups rice/water so Matt has lunch the next day, and I usually add about 5-6 pieces of cheese, but you can adjust accordingly).  After adding the cheese, cover rice and let sit for a few minutes so the cheese gets melt-y.  Then stir, mixing the cheese into the rice.  And you're done!  Kids everywhere will love this one!

So - if you've banished pork from your menu, consider this - fewer calories than you think and no trans fat makes some cuts of the "other white meat" worthy of adding back to your dinnertime rotation!

Happy Cooking!