Chipotle-Raspberry Pork Chops

Dia de los Muertos preparations. The ofrenda this year feels heavier than before — not because anyone new has died (thank God, thank every available deity) but because the pandemic has made death a daily presence, a number on the news, a statistic that I cannot disconnect from the faces I have seen at work. The dead we remember on November 1st are our dead — Alejandro, Carmen, Rosario, Tia Laura — but this year they share the altar with the unnamed thousands.

Sofia and I built the ofrenda together, our fourth year. She is seven now (her birthday was in January; time moves strangely in this account) and she handles the marigolds and candles with the reverence of a child who has been taught, year by year, that the dead are not gone. They are just in a place we cannot see. She placed the photos. She arranged the food offerings: tamales for Alejandro, arroz con leche for Carmen, mole negro for Rosario, Hot Cheetos and Coke for Tia Laura. And this year she added something new: a drawing of Roberto's cinder block grill, placed at the center of the ofrenda, because she said, "The grill is where the family meets, Daddy. Even the dead family."

I did not correct her. I did not explain that the grill is for the living. Because she is right — the grill IS where the family meets, all of it, the living and the dead, the present and the past. Every time I light the charcoal and cook my father's carne asada, Alejandro is there. Every time Elena makes mole, Rosario is there. The food is the bridge. Sofia understands this at seven. It took me thirty years.

Diego participated by attempting to eat a sugar skull. Sofia stopped him with a look. He backed away. The power dynamic between these siblings is clear: Sofia governs, Diego rebels, and the household operates in a state of negotiated chaos that mirrors most democratic systems.

Roberto FaceTimed on November 1st. He sat by his own small ofrenda — a photo of Alejandro, a candle, a plate of tamales — and he talked to his father for the first time in front of me. Not about anything specific. Just: "Hola, Papa. Aqui estoy. Here I am." Two sentences. The whole life in two sentences.

Sofia was right that the grill is where the family meets — all of them — and after FaceTiming Roberto on November 1st and watching him say two sentences that held a whole life, I needed to cook something on it. Not Alejandro’s tamales or Rosario’s mole; those belong to the ofrenda. I needed something that was mine to make, something with fire and smoke and a little sweetness underneath the heat, the way this whole season feels. These chipotle-raspberry pork chops are what came off that grill: the chipotle a nod to the flavors that raised me, the raspberry a reminder that grief and sweetness are never far apart.

Prep Time: 15 min | Cook Time: 20 min | Total Time: 35 min | Servings: 4

Ingredients

4 bone-in pork loin chops (about 3/4 inch thick, 8 oz each)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 cup seedless raspberry jam
2 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, minced
1 tablespoon adobo sauce (from the can)
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
Fresh raspberries and chopped cilantro, for garnish (optional)

Instructions

Make the glaze. In a small saucepan over medium-low heat, combine the raspberry jam, minced chipotle peppers, adobo sauce, garlic, apple cider vinegar, and Worcestershire sauce. Stir and cook for 5–6 minutes until slightly thickened. Remove from heat and set aside, reserving about 3 tablespoons separately for serving.
Season the chops. Pat pork chops dry with paper towels. Rub both sides with olive oil, then season evenly with salt, pepper, and smoked paprika.
Preheat the grill. Heat an outdoor grill or grill pan to medium-high heat (about 400°F). Lightly oil the grates.
Grill and glaze. Place pork chops on the grill and cook for 5–6 minutes on the first side without moving. Flip, brush generously with the chipotle-raspberry glaze, and cook another 5–6 minutes. Brush with glaze once more, flip briefly for 1 minute to set the glaze on both sides.
Check doneness and rest. Cook until the internal temperature reaches 145°F on an instant-read thermometer. Transfer to a plate and let rest for 5 minutes before serving.
Serve. Drizzle or spoon the reserved glaze over the rested chops. Garnish with fresh raspberries and a scatter of chopped cilantro if desired. Serve immediately.

Nutrition (per serving)

Chipotle-Raspberry Pork Chops — The Grill That Belongs to the Living and the Dead