Pork Noisettes with Prunes

• What is the most tender cut of pork and how to cook it
• How to cook according to the cut of meat sautéing versus braising
• What are chops, medallions and noisettes
• How to cook veal chops and lamb chops

Pork with prunes is a popular dish in the Touraine, that part of the Loire valley famous for its chateaux and for Vouvray wine. The combination is an intriguing one and can be adapted to several methods, including sautéing and long and short braising. When I taught cooking regularly, pork with prunes was part of the repertoire of the school’s most basic cooking class. After teaching the dish every week for years, I kept my sanity by changing it in subtle ways until I came up with different methods, each with its own nuances.