Chef Dimitra
Attiki Kotopoulo me Patates sto Fourno (Κοτόπουλο με Πατάτες στο Φούρνο)
Attiki's lemon-oregano tray roast: chicken browned above, potatoes cut large below, drinking olive oil, garlic, lemon, and all the Sunday pan juices.
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Macedonian Pork Neck Chops with Potatoes (Χοιρινές Μπριζόλες)
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Macedonian pork neck chops baked with potatoes, tomato, and cumin, a budget Sunday-style tray that works on a weeknight if you choose marbled laimo and let the edges brown.
Main Dishes
Greek
Weeknight
Comfort Food
Budget Friendly
20 min
Active Time
1 hr 15 min cook•1 hr 35 min total
Yield4 servings
Macedonian choirines brizoles are pork neck chops baked in the tapsi with potatoes, tomato, olive oil, garlic, and cumin until the meat is tender and the potato edges catch dark and sweet. This is not the thin, pan-fried chop that turns dry while you look for the salad. It belongs to the oven, to the family tray, to the northern Greek habit of making one good pan feed the table.
The cut decides the dish. Ask the butcher for laimo, pork neck chops with clear marbling, not lean loin. The neck has enough fat and connective tissue to soften during the long bake, so the meat stays juicy while the potatoes drink the tomato and oil. Lean pork browns before it becomes tender, and then you have paid for sadness.
I salt the chops early if there is time, then tuck them into the potatoes so everything bastes together. The cumin is small but not shy, the kind northern kitchens kept from the refugee and Politiki table. Good olive oil, and patience. The oven does the work.
Oven pork chops with potatoes are part of the northern Greek home kitchen, especially in Macedonia, where pork became the practical winter meat after the household pig slaughter. The cumin and tomato in this version mark the influence of Asia Minor and Constantinopolitan cooking that entered Thessaloniki and Macedonia with the refugees after 1922. It is everyday food, but the seasoning tells a history.
The technique, the tradition, and the story behind every dish.
Discover Culinary ExplorerIngredients
pork neck chops (laimos)
Quantity
4 chops, about 900g total
2 to 2.5cm thick, well marbled
waxy potatoes
Quantity
1.1kg
peeled and cut into thick wedges
ripe tomato
Quantity
160g
grated, or use 200g canned crushed tomato
extra virgin Koroneiki olive oil
Quantity
90ml
dry white wine
Quantity
80ml
water
Quantity
80ml
lemon juice
Quantity
25ml
garlic cloves
Quantity
4
thinly sliced
fine sea salt
Quantity
10g
plus more for the potatoes if needed
ground cumin
Quantity
2 teaspoons
dried Greek oregano
Quantity
1 teaspoon
sweet paprika
Quantity
1/2 teaspoon
freshly ground black pepper
Quantity
1/2 teaspoon
bay leaf
Quantity
1
flat-leaf parsley (optional)
Quantity
2 tablespoons
chopped
| Ingredient | Quantity |
|---|---|
| pork neck chops (laimos)2 to 2.5cm thick, well marbled | 4 chops, about 900g total |
| waxy potatoespeeled and cut into thick wedges | 1.1kg |
| ripe tomatograted, or use 200g canned crushed tomato | 160g |
| extra virgin Koroneiki olive oil | 90ml |
| dry white wine | 80ml |
| water | 80ml |
| lemon juice | 25ml |
| garlic clovesthinly sliced | 4 |
| fine sea saltplus more for the potatoes if needed | 10g |
| ground cumin | 2 teaspoons |
| dried Greek oregano | 1 teaspoon |
| sweet paprika | 1/2 teaspoon |
| freshly ground black pepper | 1/2 teaspoon |
| bay leaf | 1 |
| flat-leaf parsley (optional)chopped | 2 tablespoons |
Equipment Needed
- •metal tapsi or roasting pan, about 34 by 26cm
- •baking paper and foil for a tight cover
Instructions
- 1
Salt the pork
Pat the pork neck chops dry and season them all over with about half the salt, the cumin, paprika, black pepper, and oregano. If you have 1 hour, let them sit covered in the refrigerator; if you have a night, even better. The salt has time to move in, and the surface browns instead of throwing off water.
- 2
Heat the oven
Heat the oven to 200C. Choose a 34 by 26cm metal tapsi or roasting pan, wide enough for the potatoes to sit in a generous layer. A crowded pan boils. A wide pan gives you the browned edges this dish is asking for.
- 3
Dress the potatoes
Put the potato wedges in the pan with the grated tomato, olive oil, wine, water, lemon juice, garlic, bay leaf, and the remaining salt. Turn everything with your hands until the potatoes are red-gold and glossy. Tuck the bay leaf down into the juices.
- 4
Nestle the chops
Lay the pork chops over and slightly into the potatoes, with the fattier edges facing up where the heat can catch them. Spoon a little of the tomato oil over the meat. The potatoes should be partly in liquid, not drowning.
- 5
Bake covered
Cover the pan tightly with baking paper and then foil. Bake for 35 minutes, until the potatoes have begun to soften and the pork has given some of its fat to the pan. This first covered bake is what lets neck chops become tender before they brown.
- 6
Brown uncovered
Remove the cover, turn the potatoes gently, and spoon pan juices over the chops. Return the pan to the oven uncovered for 35 to 40 minutes, turning the chops once, until the meat is browned at the edges and the potatoes are tender with dark corners. If the pan dries before the potatoes are done, add a splash of hot water around the edge, not over the browned meat.
- 7
Rest and serve
Let the pan stand for 10 minutes before serving. The juices settle into a spoonable tomato oil, and the potatoes finish drinking what they need. Scatter parsley over the tray if you like, then bring the whole tapsi to the table with bread.
Chef Tips
- •Ask for laimo, pork neck, with white seams of fat through the meat. If the butcher offers lean loin chops, save them for a quick pan and cook this tray another day.
- •Use a ripe tomato in season. In winter, good canned crushed tomato is more honest than a pale fresh one. Λίγα και καλά: a few things, and good ones.
- •Serve it with a sharp cabbage salad or horta with lemon. The tray is rich, and the table needs something green and clean beside it.
Advance Preparation
- •Season the pork up to 24 hours ahead and refrigerate it covered.
- •Peel and cut the potatoes up to 4 hours ahead; keep them covered in cold water, then drain and dry them well before dressing.
Frequently Asked Questions
Nutrition Information
1 serving (about 480g)
Calories
925 calories
Total Fat
59 g
Saturated Fat
17 g
Trans Fat
0 g
Unsaturated Fat
40 g
Cholesterol
160 mg
Sodium
1150 mg
Total Carbohydrates
53 g
Dietary Fiber
6 g
Sugars
4 g
Protein
45 g
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