Pork Marsala

I didn't marry my husband for his cooking skills.  We met when we were both teaching freshman English -- him as an instructor, me as a graduate assistant.  For our first date, he invited me to his apartment for leftover walnut cheddar loaf he had prepared for a department potluck the night before.  I had been at the potluck, too, so I also had the loaf on day one.  It wasn't all that great the first time, so you can imagine that reheated it was no treat.  Who invites a girl over for a first date of mediocre leftovers?  I married him anyway, go figure.

Still, there are a few dishes he really can cook.  This pork marsala is his specialty.  He doesn't cook very often, but when I have boneless pork chops, I sometimes press him into service.  I make the dish, too, but I prefer it when he cooks it.  (Who doesn't need a break sometimes?)  He calls it scallopini, but the meat is not really cut into scallops, we cut it into strips.  Whatever you call it, it's really good.

There was no written recipe for this dish, but last night, we measured as we went.  You can alter the seasonings to suit your own taste.  My husband has even been known to add Mrs. Dash to the flour.  The main thing is to use sweet marsala.  We used dry marsala once and weren't happy with the resulting flavor.

Pork Marsala

4 boneless butterfly pork chops

1 egg

1/2 cup milk

1 1/2 cups flour

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

8 tablespoons butter

1 cup sweet marsala wine

Preheat oven to 200 degrees F. 

Trim fat from pork chops.  Slice chops into 1/2-inch slices. 

Mix salt, pepper, and garlic powder into flour in a medium bowl.  Beat egg and milk together in a small bowl.  Lightly batter the meat by dipping meat into egg mixture, then into flour. 

Melt 3 tablespoons butter in a large, non-stick skillet.  Fry the pork slices in batches until golden and cooked through, adding more butter as needed.  Keep cooked pieces warm in oven until all meat is cooked.

Return all meat to skillet.  Add 1/2 cup wine.  Gently toss the pork slices to coat.  Allow wine to cook down; add remaining wine and allow to cook down again until the sauce is thick.  Serve immediately.

Note: Adjust the seasonings to taste.  You can also add onion powder if desired.

Printable recipe