When someone says Piña Colada do you immediately break into the Rupert Holmes classic? I know I do. I was singing it to Kellen as I prepared this meal and, apparently, I am hilarious to watch dance around the kitchen- according to my year and a half son. In reality I am a horrible dancer, but it is nice to please the wee one with my cringe-worthy moves.
I am really loving grilled pineapple right now and am always looking for ways to get it into a meal. One of my favorite vacation drinks is a Piña Colada. I have never ordered one outside of a sandy spot, but when I am in the heat on a beachy vacation they taste sooooo good. I wanted to include the tropical flavors of the drink into a grilled pork chop. I love the way grilling elevates the flavors or meat. I think if I had to choose grilling would be my preferred method for cooking just about anything....there is something so perfect about getting the perfect char.
I opted for a very simple marinade that I thought brought the different parts of a Piña Colada: coconut, rum, pineapple and lime. So simple. The marinade smells like the familiar drink, and is nice and thick so the pork can absorb all the yummy flavors. Ialso like to add a bit of salt prior to grilling versus adding salt to the marinade.
The result? Delicious! Even my coconut hating skeptical husband thought these were delicious. The flavors are very milk, but give the pork a nice richness. The grilled pineapple is the cherry on the cake and gives a sweet smokey finish with each bite of pork chop.
If you want to feel a little tropical give this a try, but don't forget the pineapple and cold cocktail!
Ingredients
4 boneless pork chops
1/4 cup pineapple juice
3 Tbl dark rum
1 can coconut milk
Juice from 1 large lime
4 pineapple rings
Salt
Instructions
Whisk pineapple juice, rum, coconut milk and lime juice in a medium bowl. Place pork chops in a large resealable bag. Pour marinade over pork chops and allow it to marinate for at least 8 hours.
Preheat grill to medium-high.
Remove the pork chops from the marinade and sprinkle with salt. Grill pork chops 3 to 4 minutes per side (depending on thickness you may want to adjust your time). Allow the pork chops to rest 2-3 minutes before serving. While pork is resting place pineapple on the grill and allow it to slightly char. Remove and serve with pork.