Costolette di Maiale con Salvia

This is the weeknight cooking of central Italy. No elaborate preparation, no special occasion required. A good pork chop, butter, sage from the garden, and a splash of wine to lift the pan drippings. Dinner in fifteen minutes.

The technique is elemental: hot fat, dry meat, patience to let the crust form, then the perfume of sage crisping in butter. Americans ruin pork chops by cooking them until they are gray and fibrous throughout. Italians understand that pork, like all meat, needs rest and restraint. A blush of pink at the center is not only safe, it is correct.

Sage and pork have been partners in Italian cooking for centuries. The herb's slightly bitter, camphor note cuts through the richness of the meat. But sage is powerful. Twelve leaves are sufficient for four chops. More would overwhelm. What you keep out is as significant as what you put in.