Chef’s Choice: Shelby Griffin’s Pork Chop with Brown Butter Peaches

One of Shelby Griffin’s earliest kitchen memories was watching her grandmother wield a marble rolling pin to make her homemade biscuits. Perhaps it was a portent of things to come. As destiny would have it, the little girl from Upstate New York would one day helm a kitchen in the place where biscuit-making is a way of life.

“I have always had a passion for cooking,” said Shelby. “Growing up, my grandmothers and my parents were always cooking and in the kitchen. These are memories I will always cherish.”

The spark created by those early influences steadily grew as Shelby fed her interest in all things cooking. Watching TV chefs fueled her dreams of channeling her culinary passions into a career. While the path toward fulfillment was not so straightforward, Shelby never lost sight of her goal.

“I joined the Army in 2011, and I could've pretty much had any job I wanted,” she said. “Against the advice of my father, a military veteran himself, I chose to be a cook.”

There were many valuable lessons to be learned in a military kitchen, and Shelby embraced them all. Soon, she was invited to compete in an international culinary competition and walked away with three medals: one gold and two bronze. The stars were certainly aligning and illuminating a path toward the career of her dreams.

After leaving the military, Shelby went on to culinary school, which led to a recommendation to the Chef de Cuisine at Emeril's in Orlando. It was a pinnacle moment. 

“I was hired and over the moon,” she said. “This was my first ‘big girl’ restaurant position. I was there for about a year when I decided to make the move to Florence where my father lived. I really wanted to be closer to my family.”

Working as a line cook at Victor’s, she demonstrated remarkable culinary finesse. This led to another pinnacle: being named executive chef. A menu built around South Carolina products allows Chef Griffin to offer an authentic taste of the region. Located inside the lovely Hotel Florence, the restaurant is the avenue through which she wows patrons with favorite dishes like the one she shares here: Duroc Pork Chop with Brown Butter Peaches. 

“Fried peaches are such a Southern staple,” she said. “When creating the menu and making seasonal changes, I'm always excited when peach season rolls around. I also am a huge fan of a big, thick-cut pork chop. A heritage breed pig provides that extra flavor with the fat and marbling as well. Why not take two of my favorite ingredients and combine them into one dish?”  

Why not, indeee? Here, the pairing of two Southern favorites delivers one mouthwatering, savory-sweet entrée suitable for company or a special Sunday dinner.

Bone-in Duroc Pork Chop with Brown Butter Peaches

Chef’s note: “I prefer collard greens as a side with this dish. A pinch of basil on top of the peaches also adds a bright contrast.”   

Ingredients
2 thick-cut, bone-in pork chops
Salt and pepper
Olive oil
1 lb. fresh peaches, peeled, pitted and sliced into segments (Frozen peaches may be substituted.) 
2 sticks of butter
1 cup light brown sugar
2 teaspoons salt

Prepare the peaches. Heat a saute pan over medium heat. Add butter and cook until it is light brown in color. Add peaches. Cook until they are caramelized. Add brown sugar and salt, stirring often until sugar melts and fully coats peaches. Remove from heat.

Prepare the pork chops. Preheat oven to 400°. Drizzle olive oil in cast iron pan and heat over medium-high heat. Season pork chops generously with salt and pepper. Sear in pan on each side for 3 – 4 minutes. Finish in the oven for 10 – 15 minutes or until internal temperature reaches 135° – 140°. Plate pork chops and top with a heaping scoop of peaches. Garnish with fresh basil leaves if desired.