Comforting and Easy Smothered Pork Chops with a Buttermilk Onion Gravy

Smothered Pork Chops with a Buttermilk Onion Gravy is comfort food, at it’s best. Pork chops are seared and roasted and smothered with plenty of onions. A quick pan sauce is made with buttermilk and chicken broth, and you have a dinner that is easy enough for a work night dinner!

There’s a first time for everything, and this Southern dish is very new to this California Native. It’s not often that I make gravies– except for one of my husband’s favorite recipes, “Chicken Fried Steak“, or  Rib-Eye Steak with Onion Blue Cheese Sauce.  Most times, I make quick pan sauces, with some kind of booze and either chicken or beef stock. Good times.

Every so often, I get a “hankering” for a bone-in pork chop.   We enjoy eating meats once or twice a week, but I’ve made a decision that I’m going to buy the best quality that I can. I am thankful to have a Whole Foods in my own backyard, so I stop here once a week, and buy whatever seafood, fish, poultry or red meat looks good.

Nice chops!   I bought them, without any idea what I would make with them. (The reason I prefer bone-in, (just like I do with poultry) is that the meat cooks up moister.  I read, somewhere, that the bone helps to distribute the heat more evenly. Sounds logical to me.) Somewhere, in that recipe data base in my head, I remembered seeing a recipe for Smothered Pork Chops from Food Network Magazine.  I had all the ingredients I needed on hand, so on a week night, I got busy in the kitchen:

I’ve been making my own spice mixes for a while, now.  I save empty spice jars, mix up a batch of Italian, Mexican and Cajun seasoning and it saves money.

PT the chops dry, then season them with salt and Cajun seasoning. Dredge them in flour and tap off any excess.  Reserve the rest of the flour for making gravy.

My most preferred way to prepare meat and poultry is to sear it on one side, for a few minutes, then pop the entire skillet into a 425F oven.  Roast the chops for about 15 minutes, or until an instant read thermometer read 145F. Remove the chops to a plate, loosely covered them with foil.  Make the gravy, next.

While the chops were pan roasting, I cut some garden fresh thyme (in full bloom) and sliced one large onion, a large clove of garlic.

To the skillet, melt one tablespoon of unsalted butter, the onion, some salt and the thyme and cook until almost golden brown…

Add the garlic. Watch the garlic closely, so I doesn’t burn.  Once the onions are cooked to golden brown (about 8-10 minutes), add a couple tablespoons of the reserved flour and cook for about one minute.

Add 1-1/2 cups chicken broth , and about a generous tablespoon of Dijon Mustard (for extra flavor)

Now, for the buttermilk– about 2/3 cup.  Bubble, bubble…bring to a boil and reduce by about one-third.

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Comforting and Easy Smothered Pork Chops

This is comfort food, at it's best. Pork chops are seared and roasted and smothered with plenty of onions. A quick pan sauce is made with buttermilk and chicken broth, and you have a dinner that is easy enough for a work night dinner!

Prep Time15 minutes mins

Cook Time20 minutes mins

Total Time35 minutes mins

Course: main

Cuisine: American

Servings: 4 servings

Author: Debby – www.AFeastfortheEyes.net

Ingredients

• 4 center cut pork chops bone-in, about 1-inch thick
• 2 teaspoons Kosher salt
• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
• 1 large onion sliced 1/4 inch thick
• 1 garlic clove minced
• 1 tablespoon fresh thyme chopped
• 1 1/2 cups chicken broth
• 2 tablespoon Dijon mustard
• 2/3 cups buttermilk
• 2 teaspoons Cajun Seasoning see recipe below

CAJUN SEASONING BLEND:

• 1 tablespoon garlic powder
• 1 tablespoon onion powder
• 2 teaspoons white pepper
• 2 teaspoons ground black pepper
• 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cayenne pepper
• 2 teaspoons dried thyme
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
• Salt optional

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 425°F.
• Pat the pork chops dry; season the chops with salt and Cajun seasoning.

  Pour the flour into a shallow bowl. Dredge the pork chops in the flour to coat, and tap off any excess. Reserve the remaining flour.
• In an oven-proof skillet (cast iron is my personal favorite) heat the olive oil on medium-high heat.

  Add the chops and sear until browned, 2 to 3 minutes turn over and put into the oven.

  Roast until they reach an internal temperature of 145°F (about 20 minutes). Transfer to a plate; cover loosely with foil. Drain any excess fat.
• Note: Can you cook the chops on the stove top? Yes, but I find that searing and roasting yields better results and less risk of overcooked, dried chops. You can use boneless chops, but they can dry out much quicker than chops with the bone-on.
• Add the butter, onion, garlic, thyme and a pinch of salt to the skillet. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is golden brown, 8 to 10 minutes.
• Add 2 tablespoons of the reserved flour to the skillet and cook, stirring 1 minute.
• Add the chicken broth, and Dijon, and the buttermilk and bring to a boil and cook until reduced by one-third, about 2 minutes.
• Return the chops to the pan, including the juice.
• Perfect with a side of mashed potatoes or roasted sweet potatoes.

CAJUN SEASONING BLEND:

• Mix all ingredients together and store in a small jar.

Notes

Recipe source:  Food Network Magazine, December 2011 Issue

I save glass spice jars and re-use them for homemade spice mixes. Super easy, cost-effective!

Tried this recipe?Mention @afeastfortheeyes or tag #afeastfortheeyesblog!

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