Pork with Cream Cheese Gravy

This is one from my childhood.

It's Brazilian.  I know, you totally love it when my South American roots shine through. 

First of all, this dish is supposed to be made with "lombo" which is portuguese for pork loin.  But when I was at the old Union Square Farmer's Market something caught my eye that I couldn't resist.  There is a farm museum in Queens aptly called the Queens Farm Museum.  They have recently become an actual working farm and are selling their wares at the greenmarket!  Queens is wonderfully amazingly local.

Can you believe that this exists in New York City?  It's amazing.  And when I saw a sign advertising pork fed with grains from the Brooklyn Brewery, I couldn't say no.  So this is a new venture, and they don't have a lot going on.  No pork loins, only loin chops.  AND when I tried to buy two, which seemed like a reasonable amount, the price came out to over forty bucks.  FORTY BUCKS!  So I just bought one instead.  I figured I'd sear that baby up, finish it in the oven, and slice it up.  I mean, you just need a little meat, and since this meal was pork fest, we were getting extra protein with our salad. 

Here's our chop:

There was a lot of fat.  I cooked it with it on and carved most of it off later. 

Here it is when I took it out of the oven:

It rested happily while I made the sauce.

Using the same pan I seared the pork in, I add some sliced mushrooms into the pan.

The pan was a little dry so I added some extra bacon fat from my bacon dressing.  You can obviously use butter if you don't have bacon fat.

Add a bunch of sliced scallions and sprinkle a couple of tablespoons of flour into the pan.

When that cooks out pour in water or stock.  I used water, since I already had plenty of bacony porky flavor.

Throw in 8 oz. of cream cheese.

Let that melt:

Make sure to add the drippings from the resting meat.  You won't regret it.

And serve over the sliced pork and rice.

This is an incredible easy dish.  You really should give it a try, either with the traditional loin, or a chop. 

I'll go ahead and give you the original recipe modified to my tastes.

Pork Loin with Cream Cheese Gravy
From What's Cooking in Rio, adapted by a Player

Ingredients:

2 lbs pork loin, or loin chops, 1 per 2 people
salt and pepper, and optional sage
1 bunch of scallions, sliced
1 cup sliced mushrooms
1 Tbs flour
1 c. water or chicken stock
1 (8 oz.) package cream cheese (I prefer reduced fat)

Recipe

Rub loin/chops with salt pepper and optional sage.  Give the chops or loin a sear and finish cooking in a 350˚ oven.  (For the chops, it will be about 15 minutes.  For the loin, more like 45 minutes.)

Using the pan drippings sauté the mushrooms until brown, and add the scallions, reserving the green tops for later.  When they're soft add the flour and cook briefly.  Whisk in the water or stock.  Then stir in the cream cheese.  Cook until just boiling.  Serve over the sliced pork and rice.


Eat it.

Playing with more pork,
Meredith