Fresh Corn and Black Bean Salsa with Corn Chips Accompanying Grilled Pork Chops with Cherry Sauce;

Fresh summer fruit and vegetables are arriving daily in the market and we decide to use some of them with recipes we've recently run across, starting with a corn and black bean salsa accompanying grilled pork chops with cherry sauce.

At the market

For our salad, we prepare a dressing of lime juice, garlic, cumin, sugar, crushed red pepper, olive oil, salt, and pepper, whisking to combine.  We then add fresh corn kernels just sliced off the cob, black beans, and chopped cliantro.  Just before serving, we add diced avacado and lightly crushed corn chips.

For the dressing

Preparing the salad

Ready to serve

While preparing the salad, we treat ourselves to a little ahi poke snack.

Ahi poke

We rub the pork chops with a mixture of rosemary, salt, pepper, and garlic, cover and marinate for up to 2 hours at room temperature.  After marinating, we cook the pork over the hot side of a grill until well seared on both sides, then move them to a cooler side, cover, and cook until done (firm to the touch, juices slightly pink, and meat rosy in the center, around 135°F (57°C).  We then transfer the pork chops to a platter, cover loosely with aluminum foil, and let them rest while we make the sauce.

Marinating the pork

On the grill

We melt a tablespoon of butter in a skillet, then add minced shallot and cook until soft.  We then add a cup of fresh sweet cherries, pitted and halved, 1/2 cup of red wine (we use pinot noir), and any juices that have leaked from the pork chops.  We continue cooking, stirring occasionally, until the liquid reduces to a thin syrup, slowly stir in two more tablespoons of butter, and season with salt and pepper.  The pork chops are served with the cherry sauce on top.

Ingredients

Preparing the sauce

Serving

Dinner is ready

We have a lot of leftover corn and black bean salsa and serve it again the next day, this time with grilled steelhead trout, for which it is also well matched.

Salsa and steelhead trout

More great sumer meals!