Marinade for Grilled Pork and Peaches
The pork is first marinated in a very simple but flavorful marinade featuring rosemary and garlic. The peaches bring their own natural sweetness to the party, though you could certainly double up the marinade recipe and marinate the peaches for a few hours as well – don’t let them go for more than 6 hours, or they might start to break down and become mushy.
Then the two items meet up on the grill and once they are cooked and marked with those delightful caramelized grill lines they are served up on a platter and you will find yourself wondering whether you should alternate bites of pork and peaches, or try and combine a bit of each on a single forkful. Either way, you can’t lose.
Serving Grilled Pork and Peaches
If you have access to a bunch of fresh herbs, you can see that it makes a very simple presentation look very special (though still streamlined and clean!). I used a handful of fresh thyme sprigs spread out on a plain white platter, and tell me that this doesn’t look like the best of what summer cooking is all about.
How to Make Grilled Pork Chops and Peaches
In a container big enough to hold the pork chops, combine the garlic, rosemary, 4 tablespoons olive oil and salt and pepper in a small bowl. Smear the mixture over the pork chops, then return them to the container. If you have time, let them marinate, covered, in the fridge for 12 to 36 hours. (You can marinate the peaches separately in some of the marinade for a few hours if you like).
Preheat the grill to medium high. Carefully oil the grill rack. Cut the peaches in half and remove the pits, leaving the skin on. Brush the cut sides of the peaches with the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil, and season lightly with salt and pepper. Grill the peaches, cut sides down for 5 minutes, with the cover on, until they are slightly softened, and have pretty grill marks. Flip them over and grill, covered, for another 3 minutes. Remove to a serving platter.
While the peaches are cooking, grill the pork chops at the same time for a total of about 10 minutes, turning them once halfway, or if you prefer turn them a total of 3 times during the cooking process, rotating the chops a quarter turn when turning so that the grill marks form those nice cross-hatch marks.
When the pork is cooked, add it to the serving platter with the peaches, nestling the meat into the peaches. Let the pork sit for about 5 minutes before serving.
Equipment
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Grill
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoons finely minced garlic
- 1 tablespoon minced fresh thyme
- 6 tablespoons olive oil , divided
- Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
- 4 ¾-inch thick pork chops , about 8 ounces each
- 4 ripe but not soft peaches , washed
Directions
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In a container big enough to hold the pork chops, combine the garlic, rosemary, 4 tablespoons olive oil and salt and pepper in a small bowl. Smear the mixture over the pork chops, then return them to the container. If you have time, let them marinate, covered, in the fridge for 12 to 36 hours.
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Preheat the grill to medium high. Carefully oil the grill rack.
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Cut the peaches in half and remove the pits, leaving the skin on. Brush the cut sides of the peaches with the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil, and season lightly with salt and pepper. Grill the peaches, cut sides down for 5 minutes, with the cover on, until they are slightly softened, and have pretty grill marks. Flip them over and grill, covered, for another 3 minutes. Remove to a serving platter.
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While the peaches are cooking, grill the pork chops at the same time for a total of about 10 minutes, turning them once halfway, or if you prefer turn them a total of 3 times during the cooking process, rotating the chops a quarter turn when turning so that the grill marks form those nice cross-hatch marks.
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When the meat is cooked add it to the serving platter with the peaches, nestling the meat into the peaches. Let the pork sit for about 5 minutes before serving.