Pork and Migas Alta Mira

Hey Jessie and Tyler! Here's a twist on migas which is working out well here.

It is one of the results of the new propane grill I got for retirement. I use it to make a tomato sauce that goes with spaghetti or Mexican creations. This one is a Mexican creation with the migas principle thrown in.

Halve a dozen plum (roma) tomatoes, remove the pulp and seeds but not the middle spine. Oil a baking sheet and place the tomatoes on it. Brush them with olive oil and sprinkle lightly with Balsamic vinegar, brown (or white) sugar, minced garlic, oregano (dried is fine) and salt and pepper. On the grill, I roast these in indirect heat for 30 minutes. You can do it also in a 450-degree oven for 20-25 minutes. The tomatoes should have started to caramelize.

While you're doing the tomatoes, grill a couple of pork chops (actually I used sliced pork loin, which is cheap at the Price Club), half-inch thick, three minutes on a side, and place them in a small baking dish, like a Corning Ware.

Full disclosure: This isn't an original recipe with me. I got the roasted tomatoes part of it from the Barefoot Contessa. Let the tomatoes cool, then pulse them in a food processor with a couple tablespoons of tomato paste. Not too smooth, please.

Spoon some sauce over the pork chops and pour the rest into a container to save for spaghetti or some other creative thing. You can do all this preparatory stuff way ahead of time. I did it during the morning, when it was not so hot outside.

Ordinarily, you would serve pork like this over noodles or rice. Instead, slice five Porkyland's tortillas (this recipe is for two) into noodle-wide strips. Make migas as usual – oil, sautéed onion, green chiles, the tortilla strips, but no eggs. Heat the chops and sauce in the oven until just hot. Serve the chops and sauce on top if the migas. I will make it for you when you're here.

Tyler, I did try the migas with whole eggs, as we had talked about, and Karen was near unconscious at their goodness. The trick is to cook the whites but leave the yolk runny. I cracked the eggs on top of the migas in the hot skillet and covered the skillet, just for a minute or so (keep checking it), and it worked.

Another trick (if you don't do this already): brown some skirt steak or pork loin slices to serve on the side, then brown the onions in the meat skillet and turn them into a second skillet to make the migas. The onions pick up a ton of flavor that way.