Oven Dried Tomatoes

I have been playing with the Combustion Inc. predictive thermometer for a bit now and made some awesome food with it including these lovely pork chops. It’s not really a substitute for cooking sous vide in every case but in some cases it is because it provides a lot of information about what is happening inside the meat, its surface and the ambient environment. The “predictive” part of the thermometer is great to let you know when it expects the food to hit the target temperature and will guide your cooking temperature adjustment and meal planning. 

Impatient? Skip to the recipe.

Many recipes and thermometers expect the cook to figure out the optimal location in the center of the food to insert the probe. This little nifty probe does that work for us. Just ensure it is inserted to the right depth (see markers on it) and it will figure out where the center is and feed back all required information to the app on your phone or the optional display that you can buy. It has a total of 8 sensors along its length, 4 of which need to be inside the food. It uses all the sensors and some smart software behind the senses to predict when your food will hit its intended temperature. What it does not do is temperature control of course. So the cook still needs to keep an eye on that and adjust. 

Combustion Inc is a new company founded by Chris Young. Chris was one of the chefs behind Modernist Cuisine and then Joule (now owned by Breville). So, he has a good track record and after seeing some of his YouTube videos I decided to pick up one of the thermometers. After several cooks and in summary I highly recommend with some notes:

• The thermometer does not work with WIFI, only Bluetooth. It does seem to have a relatively short range when only using it with the phone app alone and especially if you are cooking something on the grill outside and your phone is inside. On the plus side it re-connects quickly when you get close. They seem to have frequent updates and improvements and this has improved somewhat.
• That brings me to the second point. The “optional” display for me did not end up being optional because of that first bullet above. I did not like to have to get close to the probe when doing a long slow cook (like a porchetta on the grill for example) every time the Bluetooth disconnects. So, I picked up the range-extending booster display and that works great. I keep it close to the probe, I can view all information on it and my phone app picks up the same information anywhere in the house.
• For geeky nerdy cook types (I’m a proud carrying member) I love the information it provides on the screen with all the probes and graphs. You can choose to see all 8 or just the key 3 ones of core, surface and ambient temperatures. It’s fascinating how much these vary and for barbecue (American slow smoked bbq that is) seeing the progress, the stall, and the eventual push out of the stall is damn cool. You can also choose to download ALL the data from any cook to a CSV file and use for, well, not sure yet, but that’s neat too!
• Temperature caveats and warnings quote from the website “Keep the lower half below 212°F (100°C) at all times.  Higher temps can cook the electronics, and the brainy part is down near the tip. It’s safe inside food because the water in the food keeps everything below boiling. Science! The top half of the thermometer is built for high temps up to 570°F (300°C). Avoid direct flame! Flare-ups can easily exceed temperature limits. The ceramic handle will provide brief protection, but not for long.” 

Ok, on to these simple chops. On a basic level they are prepared just like the reverse seared pork loin I posted about a while back. This time I cooked them on the charcoal grill though. I started them on the cooler side of the grill away from the coals. After hitting the target temperature of 57 C (I’ve made those again cooking to 55 C and I prefer that better) I removed the thermometer (since it is not recommended to leave it over direct heat over 550F) and seared them hot and fast on the hot side of the grill over the coals.

These awesome carrots are adapted from the book Cheers to the Publican book by Paul Kahan. They are blanched in heavily seasoned water and grilled and served with a zippy homemade ranch dressing. The book calls it Ranchovy since it incorporates some fish sauce in the mix. I like to add a pinch of MSG as well. This is a delicious dressing that goes great on any crunchy salad or a turkey sandwich.

Pork Chops, Barbecued Carrots and Ranchovy Dressing

Servings: 4 – 5

Pork Chops

• 2 – 4 Pork Chops, at least 1.5 inches thick, boneless or bone-in
• Kosher Salt (1.5% of the weight of the pork)

Carrots

• 1 lb Carrots, peeled and halved
• Large handful of your favorite BBQ rub
• 2 Tbs Kosher Salt
• 1 Tbsp BBQ rub of your choice
• Olive oil
• Lemon juice
• ¼ Cup Chopped Pecans or Walnuts

Ranchovy Herb Dressing

• 1 Cup Mayonnaise
• ½ Cup Buttermilk
• 2 tsp Garlic Powder
• 2 tsp Onion Powder
• 2 tsp Worcestershire Sauce
• 1 tsp White Wine (or apple cider) Vinegar
• 1 tsp Dijon Mustard
• 1 tsp Sugar
• 1 tsp Fish Sauce
• 2 tsp Lemon Juice
• 1 Tbsp Parsley, chopped
• 1 Tbsp Green onions or chives, chopped
• 1 tsp Oregano, chopped (or ½ tsp dried oregano)
• 1/4 tsp MSG (optional)
• Salt
• Black pepper

For the Pork

1. Season the chops with the salt. Let them rest uncovered in the fridge for 4 – 8 hours if you have the time.
2. Light a grill and ensure one side is hot and the other is just warm or cool. With the cover on my charcoal grill the temperature on the cooler side is around 220 F or so.
3. Cook the chops on the cooler side of the grill until they hit 131 F (55 C). Now, move the chops over the hot coals or burners. If using the Combustion thermometer, remove it from the meat for this step just in case. The thermometer is not recommended for direct heat over 550 F and a grill, especially coals can be very hot. Sear the chops for a couple minutes per side until crispy and browned.
4. Slice and serve.

For the dressing

1. Blend or whisk everything together.
2. Taste and adjust the seasoning as needed. I love plenty of black pepper in this one.
3. It will keep in the fridge for a couple of weeks. 

For the carrots

4. Bring about half a gallon of water to a simmer. Add the salt and the handful of BBQ rub. Add the carrots and let them cook gently until tender but still have a bite and not mushy, should be about 4-5  minutes only.
5. Drain the carrots and toss them with the tablespoon of rub and some olive oil.
6. Grill the carrots over direct heat on your gas or charcoal grill until they get nice char marks on both sides.
7. Place the carrots on a platter, season with more salt and pepper, lemon juice and drizzle generously with the Ranchovy dressing. Top with the chopped pecans.