INGREDIENTS:
- Pork
- 4 bone-in Kurobuta pork loin chops, each about 3/4" thick
- 3 tsp salt
- 1 tsp ground ginger
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp garam masala
- 1/4 tsp ground turmeric
- 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1 tsp granulated garlic
- Salad
- 1 cantaloupe, peeled, halve, and deseeded
- 4 green onions, thinly sliced
- 1 red bell pepper, halved, deseeded, and diced
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
- 2 Tbsp fish sauce
- 4 Tbsp fresh lime juice
- 2 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
- Salt and freshly ground pepper
- Crushed salted, roasted peanuts, for garnish
DIRECTIONS:
Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and rest a rack on top.
To make the pork, pat dry with paper towels.
In a small bowl, combine all spices and firmly press rub onto pork chops. Set aside for 30 minutes to 1 hour.
Preheat oven to 500° and preheat a cast iron skillet over high heat, brush with oil. Cook pork chops for 2 minutes on each side and transfer to prepared sheet pan. Roast in oven until pork chops reach an internal temperature of 145°. Remove from oven, loosely tent pork chops with foil, and let rest for 3 minutes.
To make the salad, coarsely grate 1/4 of cantaloupe with a cheese box grater to get about 1-1 1/2 cups. Slice remaining cantaloupe into thin pieces.
In a bowl, combine green onions, bell pepper, cantaloupe, cilantro, fish sauce, lime juice, and olive oil. Season with salt and pepper. Arrange salad over pork chops and sprinkle with nuts.