Pork cutlet with apple, bacon, dried fruit and herb rice stuffing

Khaya Silingile - one of the final top 6 finalists in the first season of MasterChef SA - developed this festive recipe for Spekko. You can change and make a different meal of it every time. Instead of stuffing the pork chop, use the stuffing recipe as a rice side dish to the pork.

• Serves: 8
• Difficulty: easy
• Prep time: 5 - 10 minutes
• Cooking time: 30 - 45 minutes

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Ingredients

• 8 x 200 g French trimmed pork cutlets cut double thick
• ½ cup finely chopped rosemary leaves
• 16 slices prosciutto (optional)

For the stuffing

• 250 ml (1 cup) Spekko Long Grain Parboiled Rice
• 250 ml (1 cup) Spekko Saman Brown Rice
• 150 g bacon bits
• 750 ml (3 cups) finely diced onions
• 750 ml (3 cups) finely diced celery
• ¾ cup dried cherries
• ¾ cup dried apricots, diced
• ¾ cup cranberries
• 1 cup diced apples, with peel
• 125 ml (½ cup) flat leaf parsley
• 90 ml (6 tbsp) dried mixed herbs

Method

1. Cook the Spekko Parboiled and Brown rice as per the instructions on the packets. For a more intense flavour substitute ½ the water measurement with chicken stock.
2. Place bacon in a large frying pan and cook over medium-high heat until brown and crisp. Reserve the fat and drain bacon on a paper towel.
3. In the same pan reduce heat to medium add onions and celery to the bacon fat with a tablespoon of water and sauté until soft 10-15 minutes. Add all the dried fruit and apples. Sauté until soft, adding another tablespoon of water if necessary.
4. Combine the white and brown rice, add bacon and onion mixture. Season with parsley and mixed herbs.
5. Pre-heat oven to 200°C.
6. For French trimmed pork you can get your butcher to do this for you but it’s quite easy to do it yourself. Find the part of the cutlet where the meat ends and fat begins on the bone and scrape off this excess until the bone is completely exposed. French trimming is mostly great for presentation and does not really affect the flavour or cooking method of the meat so if you would rather not do this step simply go straight to the stuffing.
7. Make sure your pork chops are cut double thick (the size of two pork chops combined). Cut an incision on the side of the pork, cut as deep as the bone. Fill with rice stuffing and secure with toothpicks. Repeat process with all the pork chops.
8. Press pork into chopped rosemary and cover with prosciutto slices.
9. Place in a lightly greased baking tray and roast for 15-20 minutes.
10. Serve with a salad of sugar snap peas, green beans, broad beans and baby corn.
From the Spekko kitchen
• This is an attractive dinner party dish. The pork and stuffing can easily be multiplied to serve more, if you cater for 10 or more people.
• Stuff the pork chops earlier in the day, keep refrigerated, and cook in the oven just before serving.