Vegan Breaded Pork Chops, Creamy Horseradish Mashed Potatoes with Shitake Gravy And Green Beans (Welcome to the Wiener Schnitzel Chronicles)

Sometimes the food I grew up with gets a hold of me and just won't let go, no matter how hard I try. Now, I'm not saying ALL the food I grew up with should make a re-appearance on my vegan menu (Spam, round steak. . . ew), but there are some dishes so worthy of a vegan attempt, it'd be a sin not to at least try. Take last night. I had this overwhelming desire for an ultimate childhood comfort dish: pork chops (minus the pork), a side of mashers made with vegan mayo and horseradish and then, an easy, but oh-so-good shitake mushroom gravy and a heaping side of green beans. . . I had earned it. (Note: *If your grocery store does not usually have shitake mushrooms on hand--like mine never seems to have, I found a bag of frozen shitakes and this really helps in those dire circumstances where shitakes are called for. Just a suggestion: check the frozen food area.) 

I re-enrolled in my water aerobics class (for the third session and I still love it even though I am the youngest member of the class and all the ladies have sort of "adopted" me). Water aerobics is a life changer in and of itself. Talk about body image worries be gone. Nothing humbles me more than to look around and see stories of inspiration: women who don bathing suits, some nearly eighty, splashing around for a good forty-five minutes. Yesterday we listend to Michael Blube. Pure heaven. No vanity required.

I got to the gym about a half hour early and spent twenty minutes on the elliptical machine. I am not a fan of this workout monster. I had run a 5k the day before, but I try to keep a good mix of workouts in winter because once we hit the forties outside, I know I'll up my miles on street pavement. My Almost Fifty body appreciates the forward motion. Okay, some nights, my Almost Fifty body also appreciates a couple of ibuprofen, too. As I type, we are forecast to get 4-6 inches of snow tonight--then a bitter cold sets in. Surviving Midwest winters are what make us some of the strongest people in the country, bar none.  

So it was a vegan pork chop night. This meal is so easy. So much better for you. So full of yum. I could go on. A photo really cannot do this justice. I did my best in taking the picture. I actually had to ladle up scraps we had leftover. Dr. Thyme and I both agreed this was REALLY good grub and that it warranted a post after we had wiped our plates clean! So this is like our third plate we had--which then ended up as lunch for hubby today.

One of the most imortant parts of creating this vegan dish was the meat substitution. I opted for Match Meats Pork. The texture I got after I had mixed my ingredients and formed my patties, dredged them in flour and panko bread crumbs is about as close to the real deal as you'll get--but alas no one got hurt! I won't get on my vegan soap box, but will say for the new reader out there: if you ever wanted to try a good vegan dinner on for size, try this one. I'll give you the recipe for the chops below. As for the potatoes, I sort of gave them a new spin--so the recipe for my creamy mashers is below as well. My gravy recipe is VERY easy, too--and a must for this menu. All were amazing! Uh, the green beans: from a can.

Vegan Breaded Pork Chops

1 package Match Meats Pork (thawed, but not to room temperature)
2 scallions white and green parts, sliced thin
1 tablespoon minced garlic (about 5 garlic cloves)
2 teaspoons dried Italian herbs
1/2 tablespoon dried onion powder
1 teaspoon paprika
dash of salt and fresh ground pepper
1 cup unsweetened soy milk
1 tablespoon dijon mustard
1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour plus S & P for flavor
1 cup panko bread crumbs
canola oil for frying chops

In a large mixing bowl, add Match Pork, scallions, garlic, herbs, onion powder and paprika. Take a metal spoon and mix all ingredients together well. (I found that using the spoon to incorporate the mixture, then sort of squishing it against the side of the bowl to be really helpful.) Once the mixture is really well mixed, shape into about four thin patties into an oval shape and place on a plate. Now create your assembly line for frying the chops. In a small, flat container, add the soy milk and dijon mustard--whisk together. Next to this bowl, put the flour mixed with a bit of salt and pepper. In the third flat dish or plate, add the panko bread crumbs. In a medium saute pan over medium heat, add about 2 tablespoons of canola oil. Take a patty and dredge it in the milk mixture, then the flour mixture, then milk again, then panko crumbs and place in saute pan--cook for about five minutes, then flip over and cook on the other side. (I only cooked two patties at a time then placed them in the oven to keep warm while I finished the other two.)

Vegan Creamy Horseradish Mashed Potatoes

2 lbs. of yukon gold potatoes, peeled and sliced into 1/2" rounds
1/3 cup vegan mayo
2 tablespoons horseradish
1 tablespoon minced garlic
2 tablespoons vegan margerine
splash of unsweetened soy milk
fresh ground pepper

Boil the potatoes until fork tender, then drain. Mash up with a fork a bit. Next, add all remaining ingredients and using a potato masher, mash, mash, mash. (But not too much, you don't want glue!)

Vegan Shitake and Onion Gravy

1/2 onion chopped
1/2 cup sliced shitake mushrooms, chopped up
1 tabelspoon minced garlic
1 teaspoon dried thyme
S & P to taste
1/2 cup white cooking wine
2 cups veggie stock
3 tablespoons vegan margerine or vegan butter
1 tablespoons corn starch
1/2 cup water

In a medium saute pan, and a dash of canola oil--1 tablespoons should do it--add the onion, mushrooms and garlic. Allow to cook over low-to-medium heat, until the onions begin to soften and get brown around the edges--about ten minutes. Next, add the white cooking wine. Alllow this to reduce--or barely be there after it bubbles down. Next, add the veggie stock. Bring to a boil for about a minute more, then turn heat down. Whisk one tablespoon at a time, the vegan margerine or butter--this should begin to make the gravy a bit thicker. Whisk in the thyme. Turn heat to low, allow to simmer. Now, mix the cornstarch with the water and carefully pour this into the gravy mixture, whisking at the same time. I only pour in a tiny bit at a time, then bring the heat up--the thickening happens really fast. If your gravy gets too thick, add more veggie stock. Allow gravy to simmer over very low heat about 5-10 minutes for the flavors to really develop. Add fresh ground pepper and salt to taste.