smoked stuffed pork chops w/ crabmeat

[Bassman]

Hello all,
I made this last weekend and it was awesome. Only thing I changed was I didn't use any bread crumbs and doubled the amount of crab. The smoke flavor really added to it. :P

Ingredients:
4 pork chops, 1" thick
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground white pepper
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/8 teaspoon thyme
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
1/2 cup finely chopped bell pepper or jalapenos
1/2 cup chicken broth
1 teaspoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon lemon juice
2 eggs, slightly beaten
3/4 c. finely chopped celery
1 1/2 tbsp. sherry
2 slices bread, cut in 1/2" cubes
1/2 pound fresh lump crab, picked over

Directions:
Cold smoke pork chops ahead of time,
Preheat oven to 350°F. In a small bowl, combine the salt, white pepper, red pepper and thyme; mix well and set aside

Place the pork chops on a flat surface and make a 1" slit to form pocket, being careful not to cut all the way through the meat. Sprinkle the seasoning mix on the outside surface and inside the pocket; set aside.

Spray a medium skillet with nonstick vegetable cooking spray (or use some olive oil) and place over high heat. Add the onions, bell pepper, celery and saute for 5 minutes, stirring often. Add the stock and the remaining seasoning mix. Reduce the heat to simmer; stir in the soy sauce, sherry, eggs, lemon juice, bread cubes and crabmeat. Cook for 1 minute, or until the mixture is firm but not dry. Remove from the heat. Spoon into the pocket and secure with toothpicks. Spray an 8" square baking dish with nonstick vegetable cooking spray or oil with some olive oil.

Place the pork in the dish and cover with aluminum foil. Bake for 30 minutes, turning once during cooking. Uncover and cook for 10 minutes more. Turn the pork over and cook for 10 minutes longer, or until brown.     Serves 4

[Habanero Smoker]

This recipe definitely looks like a winner to me.

[Tiny Tim]

Looks good.  Got a question though.  Would imitation crab meat work in this, or do I have to use fresh lump crab meat (not sure what I can get here in land-locked Iowa)?

[NePaSmoKer]

Sounds good Bassman.

Might be on my next to smoke list

nepas

[iceman]

Looks good.  Got a question though.  Would imitation crab meat work in this, or do I have to use fresh lump crab meat (not sure what I can get here in land-locked Iowa)?

I've used half imitation and half real crab mixed together for stuffed rib eye steaks before with fairly decent results. I'm not sure how 100 % imitation would work flavor wise though. I think you need some of the real crab and the juice from it for more of a "Crab" taste. Just thinking out loud Tiny. :)

[Tiny Tim]

Turns out we're heading to the grocery store tonight, so I'll peruse what they have.  Dad and I aren't big crab "conniseurs" (sp), so I don't think it'll be that big of a deal, flavor wise.  Just wanted to know if it was possible. :)

[Tiny Tim]

Well, I got the stuff to make these things last night...thinking they'll be on the menu for Sunday night.  Was gonna pick up the stuff for some Yo Momma Meatloaf too, but the store didn't have any ground pork...had sausage, but not plain pork.  Decided to let that one go until next weekend.