Ever since I started brining my turkeys for Thanksgiving (that is, when I'm not deep-frying them), I've believed that, as Alton Brown used to say, stuffing is evil. He later recanted that stance, but even though my pal Carolyn Shepard was in the episode wherein he concocted a somewhat bizarre method to pull off stuffing a bird without drying it out, I've never gone back.

However, it was actually the change from stuffing to aromatics in my turkey that got me exploring ways to introduce flavors to other meats by stuffing them.

Take, for example, a pork loin chop ... basically a thick slice taken from a whole boneless pork loin. Sadly, modern pork has lost the fat marbling that once made it one of the most flavorful meats around. In our obsession with leaner and leaner meats, we've pushed the big pork producers into turning out meat that, unless it's treated just right, will be rendered as tasteless and tough as cardboard.

You can still get old-style, or "pastured" pork from small producers, like my friends at Spring House Meats, but 99 percent of what's out there is the overly lean stuff.

You can marinate, which is my most frequent method for getting flavor into pork, but the flavors that you can impart that way are somewhat limited. Also, and I'm not speaking to my fat-conscious readers here, you're not doing anything to add a bit of fat back to the cooking process and give yourself a little insurance at cooking time.

That's where stuffing works so well. Let's look at my current favorite.

Pork Chops With Bacon-Gouda Stuffing

4 pork chops, cut 1 ½ to 2 inches thick
6 slices bacon, cooked crisp and crumbled
4 ounces smoked Gouda
2 cloves garlic, chopped
2 tbsp. chopped fresh parsley

In each chop, use a sharp, thin-bladed knife to cut a pocket as deep as you can without piercing all the way through. If you use bone-in chops, this is easy, since the bone will stop the blade. If you use boneless chops, you'll have to be careful.

Mix the remaining ingredients together in a bowl, tossing thoroughly. Stuff each chop with the mixture and close the pocket with toothpicks. If you're feeling especially artful, sew up the pocket with butcher's twine.

Season the outside of the chops with your choice of spices. I like Penzey's Pork Chop Seasoning or Cowboy Trail Dust from TexMexToGo.com. The old standby of kosher salt and freshly cracked pepper works well, too.

Set up your grill for indirect cooking. If you use charcoal, push it to one side, leaving an area where the chops can cook without direct heat underneath. If you use gas, leave one set of burners off to achieve the same effect. Cook the chops, alternating between searing over direct heat and cooking indirectly, until done.

Let the chops sit for at least 15 minutes, lightly covered with foil, before slicing.

And don't forget one of my old standby rules: What works for pork will quite often work for chicken, too. This stuffing is outstanding inside a boneless chicken breast!

Don't let my stuffing recipe be the end of your explorations, though. Experiment! Get a half-dozen chops and stuff each one with a different mix of herbs, cheese, meats or whatever strikes your fancy. My next experiment is going to involve a bit of ham, pepperjack cheese and currants.

You can also use stuffing to make a decadent cut of meat even more so. My very first experiment in this vein, my blue cheese-stuffed ribeye, is so rich that it's illegal in seven states.

It's dead simple, too. Cut a pocket in a ribeye just as you would with a chop and stuff it with a mix of 1-2 ounces Roquefort or other good blue cheese and 2 minced garlic cloves. Seal the pocket with butcher's twine and grill until your desired doneness. For an extra-special touch, right before you take it off the grill, turn the steak and put a dollop of pepper jam or jelly on it. It will melt and form a glaze that will give a sweet-hot counterpoint to the richness of the cheese.

Serve this to someone you want to impress. You will.

Got a question? Comment? Topic you'd like to see covered? Drop me a line, anytime!